Little Things
by Zelia Theb
Summary: Relationships aren't easy when you're too afraid to kiss the one you like. How could someone so great develop OCD anyway? ShounenAi/Yaoi. Yusuke-Kurama-Kuwabara possibilities.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

I apologize if this theme has been tackled before. I claim ignorance as I have only recently returned to FFN. This is just something that I felt I needed to write about. That something being OCD and its partner, Hypochondria.

This fic contains Shounen-Ai.

It is my intent to actually make readers uncomfortable during certain parts of the story. I feel that the theme is portrayed better that way.

Before you go through wondering, "How in the hell could that happen?" - please note that my intention is to get very, very, very deep into the topic as the story progresses. This chapter is merely an "introduction," if you will.

Minor update - Thanks for catching what I missed during editing, I appreciate it!

**Warnings: **Smoking. Light swearing. Could get better or worse as the chapters go on, depending on my whims.

**Disclaimer: ** _Yu Yu Hakusho _©_ Yoshihiro Togashi._

* * *

**Little Things**

By Zelia Theb

* * *

They were there.

At his house.

"Shuichi! Your friends are here!"

Kurama emerged from his room, hair tied back with a pencil in hand, and descended the stairs. His mother had invited his friends (and teammates) Yusuke and Kazuma into their home.

"Hey, Kura...Minamino!" Yusuke waved.

"Minamino!" Kazuma was a bit more on target.

"Hello," Kurama replied. "What brings you two here?"

His mother, Shiori, smiled politely and then made her way into the kitchen, deciding it best to leave her son and his friends be.

"Well," Yusuke began, "we wanted to know if you wanted to hang out." One big brown eye winked in Kurama's direction.

"She's in the kitchen, idiot," Kazuma said.

"So what, Kuwabara!" Yusuke replied. "I don't need Botan yelling at me again for spilling the beans!"

"No thank you," Kurama answered. "I have homework to do."

"It's kinda important," Yusuke said.

Kurama let out a heavy sigh. "Very well. I have to get ready."

That's when the two teens followed him upstairs to his room.

It was not pleasant.

Kurama set the pencil down on his desk and immediately moved to his closet. He was wearing a plain white tee, and decided that he might need a bit more to cover up with if he were to be out all night.

"You rearranged a little, huh?" asked Yusuke, taking in the bedroom. It had been a month since he'd been in the room.

Kurama was sick at the time. Yusuke couldn't believe it, but it had happened. He never did find out _what_ exactly Kurama had contracted, but he was grateful he didn't catch it. Kurama had been shaky, feverish, and could barely move. He would cough and sneeze and wheeze and whine and toss and turn. He didn't have much of an appetite, but at least he was _able_ to eat. It kept him out of school for two weeks.

Yusuke had visited him once each week. Each time, Kurama looked the same: miserable. His face was pallid, nose red, and his hair was plastered all over his forehead and neck. He was happy that Kurama looked a lot better. Not quite as radiant and handsome as he had before the illness, but still much better.

"I did," Kurama said, pulling out two sweaters, one midnight blue, the other daffodil yellow.

Yusuke's eyes continued scanning the room. They fell onto a neat stack of open textbooks, the eraser-end of a pencil protruding from them like bookmarks. Next to the stack was a single paper, and the discarded pencil that Kurama had set down earlier.

"You still doing make-up work?" Yusuke inquired.

"Yes." The demon could not remember if his mother had washed the yellow sweater, or if he had.

Kuwabara moved over to the stack, just to get an idea of what it was that Kurama was working so hard on. When he spotted the math problems on the paper, his eyes went wide.

"Whoa. That's advanced stuff."

"Indeed," Kurama responded. He knew for sure that he had washed the blue one.

Curious, Yusuke nudged Kuwabara to the side, took a look, and exclaimed, "Holy crap! How would you even begin to solve _that_?" In order to get some sort of idea, he briefly picked up the pencil to get a better look at the paper. It was either algebra, calculus, or the M-Theory. He set the pencil back down and uttered another phrase of amazement.

Kurama's eyes set on the pencil for a moment, and then on the sweater in his hand. He had chosen the midnight blue.

"I will meet you two outside," he said, voice lacking emotion.

The two boys took that as a sign of needing privacy to change. Kurama had always been a terribly private person. Yusuke left first, with Kuwabara trailing.

But Kuwabara was perceptive. That was his strength in the team.

So he took one last glance behind him before he stepped down the stairs. He watched Kurama pick up his homework at the corners, leaving the pencil on top, and let go of it above the wastebasket next to his desk. After witnessing the unusual and wasteful behavior, Kuwabara suddenly felt that it was best to catch up to Yusuke before he was caught spying.

Outside, Yusuke reached into the pocket of his uniform and grabbed a pack of cigarettes. _I should probably get the dirt off my nails_, he thought as he held the pack up.

"Hey, Urameshi," Kuwabara said, "don't do that right here. It's not respectful to Kurama's mom."

"What the hell do I care?" he said, pulling out one of the slender sticks.

"'Cause, ya jerkface, we gotta stay on her good side! She's a nice lady and all."

Yusuke was already on his way to lighting up, with one hand cupped over a match, protecting it from the wind. As he exhaled his first drag, he said, "Kurama looks like shit."

"At least go across the street, Urameshi, jeez!"

"Fine." And they did so.

"Whaddya mean?"

Yusuke glanced at him sideways, inhaled, and then flicked the ashes. With a quick puff of smoke, he said, "Just look at him."

"And you think - jeez, idiot!" Kuwabara waved a hand in front of his face as he coughed into the other. "Do ya really have to do that?"

"Do ya really have to stand downwind?"

The taller quickly moved to the other side of Yusuke, and asked, "You think she's the reason? Too overbearing, or something?"

"Not sure." Another drag, slow and steady. "Something's up."

"Yeah, he was dressed kinda weird," Kuwabara agreed.

"He coulda just taken the jacket of his uniform off, ass."

"He had on different pants, ass."

"You'd notice."

"I do notice, and not for any reason that you're thinkin'!" Kuwabara exclaimed, voice slightly raised.

"Jeez, idiot. Talk a little louder, will ya? His mom prolly heard that from inside."

"But!" Kuwabara protested. Yusuke was such a _jerk_ sometimes. Most of the time.

"Never seen him with his hair back like that either."

"You're right."

Yusuke and Kuwabara, their conversation over, thought about those things as they stood waiting. It was rather strange behavior. Yusuke was still in his green uniform, and he hadn't even bothered to fix the few strands of his hair that his gel refused to keep back. Likewise, Kuwabara was still in his blue uniform, but unlike Yusuke, took the time to fix his hair at school. It was a tad humid out, and that tended to make his hair really pop out.

However, their attitudes with regard to their appearance was not out of character. Both of them have had to wash bloodstains out of their uniforms several times. But so had Kurama. It was slight, but enough to get their attention.

* * *

Kurama made his way to the bathroom sink. Grabbing toilet paper, he covered the faucet handle and turned on the water, then tossed the paper out.

Water.

Soap.

One.

Two.

Three.

Four.

Five.

Six.

Seven.

Eight.

Nine.

Ten.

Soap.

One.

Two.

Three.

Four.

Five.

Six.

Seven.

Eight.

Nine.

Ten.

Eleven.

Twelve.

Thirteen.

Fourteen.

Fifteen.

Sixteen.

Seventeen.

Eighteen.

Nineteen.

Twenty.

Drying his hands, he quickly turned the water off. His mother would not be pleased if she found him wasting it so. He went back into his bedroom and put on the sweater, before heading downstairs.

"Is it alright if I go out for a bit, mother?" he asked her, right hand gripping at the hem of his sleeve.

"Absolutely, dear. Will you be out all night?" Shiori knew that her son often stayed the night with Yusuke and Kazuma. They were such polite boys, so she didn't mind.

"Perhaps," he answered, though was certainly hoping to complete the mission as soon as possible.

"Let me give you some money, dear." She moved into the corner and grabbed her purse, reaching in to find her wallet. Kurama reluctantly held out his left hand to accept the gift. The dirty, everybody-in-town-probably-touched-this gift.

"Thank you," he said, putting the town in his left pocket. "I will call you if I stay out."

"Alright, have a good time!" She sent a pleasant smile his way, which he lovingly returned.

_Might as well keep the contamination to one _hand, he thought as he left, allowing his right hand to come out of his sleeve. His other hand began to tingle as he used it to close the door behind him. Breathing deeply, he crossed the street, regaining his composure as he met up with his allies. The scent of smoke was faint, but present.

"Man, what took you so long?"

"It was only a few minutes."

"Urameshi's just being a crab-ass," Kuwabara remarked as they began walking.

"What is this case about?" Kurama asked, disregarding the prior exchange. His hand was still tingling, and he felt his sweater crawling all over his torso. The sooner this was over with, the better.

"We need your help on a stake out," said the detective. "Some guy named Kino's supposed to show up at the Mister Burger and pass drugs to some guy with a purple mohawk."

"Then this is a matter for the police, then."

"Uh, no, 'cause both of 'em are possessed by low level spirits. And the drug is from the Demon World anyway. Koenma wants it gone."

Bugs. All over his hand, crawling up his forearm and onto his chest.

"Fine."

And they walked. And walked. And walked. Kurama refused to use the public transit, and it only took them that much longer. Even Yusuke, the most delinquent of them all, was shocked at Kurama's need to be a pain in the ass. But Kuwabara knew better.

How fortunate it was for them that Mister Burger had automatic doors.

The scent of lemon and grease pervaded the air. The floor glistened in the fluorescent lighting that dotted the restaurant. Kurama's stomach began to settle as he took in the aroma.

There wasn't much of a line when they got to the counter. Yusuke and Kazuma ordered the same thing: a burger, fries, and a soda. The redhead was about to do the same, that is, until he saw her. And her nails. Adjusting her hair. Then using her hands to touch the rolls. How could his friends have missed this? It was so blatantly obvious that she was contaminating the food! The bugs began crawling again. Thankfully, the boy at the deep-fryer knew better. He was changing gloves each and every time they were contaminated, and being quite gingerly with the food. Kurama opted out of the burger and went for just the fries and the drink. He made sure to grab extra napkins before carrying his tray to the table that Yusuke had chosen.

He wiped away the excess crumbs on the table with those napkins, set down his tray, then excused himself from the table. Kazuma watched him carefully as he threw away the napkins on his way to the restroom.

"Why do his fries look better than mine?"

"I dunno, man. Probably a fresh batch."

"That's not fair."

"Who cares, just eat your damn fries."

"Sorry about that," Kurama apologized, sitting back down after having been gone for a minute.

"Your fries look better than mine," Yusuke said. He began reaching for one of them, the dirt in his nails threatening to drop all over the place, when Kuwabara elbowed him. _Hard_. In the ribs.

Kurama gave Kazuma a quick glance, and then took a fry, thankful for the save. He didn't get to eat much before Purple Mohawk walked in.

"Perfect," said Yusuke. "Now we wait for Kino."

"And what are we exactly looking for?" asked Kurama, eyeing Yusuke cautiously.

"Blond guy, spiked hair, Tsukyomi-High uniform."

"Then let's get this over with," said the demon, standing from the booth and throwing away his hardly-touched meal.

"Damn it, you had the good fries, too!"

"Urameshi!"

* * *

"So, what exactly's your problem?"

"What do you mean by 'problem'?" Kurama questioned.

"What I mean is..." A long drag. "...your attitude. You've been in a pissy mood all night."

Kuwabara did not bother to interfere this time. Yusuke was a complete idiot, and he would not listen to him anyway. Was it not obvious that Kurama had developed some sort of OCD? He wasn't sure how someone of Kurama's calibur could have fallen in such a way, though he knew that a certain sort of madness always accompanied genius.

Kuwabara was correct. The fox had indeed become afflicted by Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, spurred on by a newly found hypochondria. The illness he had a month back took the wind out of him. He had never felt so out of control in his entire life, and it terrified him. That was why he had rearranged his room. He had inexplicably transformed into his Youko form one night, and methodically turned everything upside down (with force). Papers, clothing, and the occasional piece of broken wood had littered the floor. His mother, hearing the raucous from her own bedroom, rushed into his room to find him passed out among the mess, drenched with sweat.

When he realized what he had done, he became frustrated when he was unable to muster up the same energy to grow one of the many panaceas he had seeds for. Seeds, he discovered, that had been vacuumed up during clean-up.

Worst of all, he scared his mother. That would not happen again.

"I'm alright," Kurama lied.

"Kuwabara," Yusuke said, taking his last drag and then tossing his cigarette to the ground, "walk ahead of us."

"Urameshi!" Kuwabara stopped cold to pick up the still smoking stick. Kurama shuddered in disgust. "Stop littering! The world is not your ashtray!"

_"Kuwabara..."_

"Fine, but I'm throwing this out at home!" He stomped away, and shouted, "And I'm gonna make sure I run water on it so I don't go starting a fire like you'd prolly do!"

Yusuke muttered something underneath his breath before saying, "Now that he's gone, you can tell me."

"What makes you think that I trust you more than Kuwabara?"

The words struck Yusuke harder than Kuwabara had earlier in the day. "I dunno, just a saying," he lied. "Come with me."

"Where?"

"Over here, to the alley."

Kurama held a reserved and cautious look. _There's garbage cans, _he thought._ And puddles._

"Yeah yeah yeah. Ew gross, and all that." The detective was unaware of how painfully spot-on he was with his remark. "But it's not right here on the sidewalk." Yusuke gestured with his eyebrows. "Will you come with me?"

Reluctanty, Kurama complied. He made a conscious effort not to touch his face with his hands, nor much else for that matter. Luckily the alley wasn't as dirty as he had feared. Nonetheless, Yusuke managed to nearly pin him near a wall.

"Seriously, what's the matter? You look terrible. You're acting terrible."

"It is nothing, Yusuke."

"It's something." Yusuke moved toward him and gently caressed his face with the back of his hand, causing the fox to wince. "Does this freak you out?"

"Does what?" he asked, his face burning from both aspects of the touch.

The detective stepped forward again with his hand, only to have Kurama recoil, backing himself into the wall with a thud. The hand stopped.

"I guess it does," he said, allowing his hand to cascade to his side.

"It doesn't," Kurama told him. "I'm just not feeling very well today."

"Again?" Yusuke grew concerned. He moved closer again to feel Kurama's head, a gesture the fox didn't have the energy to argue against at the moment. Yusuke's palm stayed there for a moment, carefully calculating Kurama's body temperature with his touch, until finally, it moved to the redhead's cheek, where he had wanted it in the first place.

"Am I alright?" Kurama was worried that he may have contracted something during their short mission.

"You're fine." Yusuke stepped in closer.

Suddenly it was everything. Smoke. Dirt. Nails. Germs, germs, germs. The sweater felt like it was moving. Yusuke leaned in. Kurama deflected, turning his head to the side.

"No," Kurama said, palms starting to sweat. "I do not feel well. I don't want you to catch anything from me."

A sigh, then a release. Yusuke stepped back, giving Kurama his personal space again.

"It's fine. I get it." _Picked one hell of a time to make a move, didn't I?_ Yusuke thought. Kurama said nothing. Yusuke took this as a sign that he was right; he freaked out his friend, and that friend was trying his best to let him down easy. _I should have known better. He's been pissy all night. He didn't wanna be near me tonight to begin with._

Kurama felt uneasy. He pondered what might have happened had he not turned crazy. Would it have even culminated to anything if he hadn't been in such a foul mood? And since when did he display anything less than politeness? Yusuke wasn't his enemy. He wasn't treating the people he cared about poorly.

Kurama had denied Yusuke a kiss. It was clear that Yusuke didn't understand. Even if they were to start a relationship, would he eventually be able to? Kurama feared what Yusuke might do if he knew his true condition. He wanted to believe that Yusuke would be gentle, but that was just a fantasy. In a perfect world, everything would be clean. Every_one_ would be clean. Life would be easy.

But Yusuke was tough. He didn't care about "the little things." Having been trained by Genkai, he mostly likely would react in the same way that she would in the situation.

That meant exposure therapy. Effective? Yes. Terrifying? Absolutely. Would Yusuke have the patience to take all of the baby steps with him? Suffice it to say, his reputation wasn't built on patience.

"I'll see you later Kurama."

The fox realized how shallow and quick he had been breathing. As well as how long he had been doing so.

"Yusuke." The teen turned to face him. Kurama paused, unsure if he wanted to say what he had intended to. "Please come over to my house tomorrow, if you'd like to."

"You don't have to play-date me."

"Placate. And, I'm not."

"Seriously?" Yusuke's muscles eased up. _I could swear it was play-date. It kinda makes sense._

"Yes. A good night's sleep should do some good."

The other teen smirked, and asked, "Goin' home now?"

"Yes."

"I can walk with you."

"Alright." Kurama looked down the street. "Where's Kuwabara?"

_To Be Continued...?_

* * *

**Author's Note**

The "?" is there so that I don't make any promises. I would really like to continue this story, but at this stage in time, I actually don't have any ending or ultra-developed plot like I have had with past stories. I found that having an idea in mind, going for it, and then changing my mind mid-story has been a road-block for me, and causes me to lose interest. Right now, I am just sticking to the theme of OCD, and seeing what happens around it. Oh, and with the occasional smattering of boy-love.

That being said - the pairings are actually up in the air too. They will involve Kurama in some way, though.

Do not be alarmed by the absence of Hiei. If you're a returning reader, you know that I don't forget him!

Feel free to look up the M-Theory.

(Completely off-topic - check out my profile for a public service announcement.)

Thanks for reading! Please feel free to review!

-Zelia


	2. Chapter 2

**Long Author's Note Explaining the Previous Chapter:**

There was some concern as to how Kurama, as tough as he is, would be prone to OCD and hypochondria. I've decided to link up three Wikipedia entries in my profile so that it's easy for everyone to do some quick research.

There had been one concern that I had no basis for Kurama's madness. I actually introduced this in the first chapter, here:

_The fox had indeed become afflicted by Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, spurred on by a newly found hypochondria. The illness he had a month back took the wind out of him. He had never felt so out of control in his entire life, and it terrified him. That was why he had rearranged his room. He had inexplicably transformed into his Youko form one night, and methodically turned everything upside down (with force). Papers, clothing, and the occasional piece of broken wood had littered the floor. His mother, hearing the raucous from her own bedroom, rushed into his room to find him passed out among the mess, drenched with sweat._

For a moment, consider the canon plot that Kurama does indeed love his mother, so much so that he felt he needed to sacrifice his own life to save hers. Now, in my fic, imagine being Kurama. You are aware of the power that you have. You are aware of your ability to be ruthless. You want to hide that from your mother. Suppose that you cannot remember a moment where you were out of control, unable to conceal this fact from your mother, and you terrify this person with the very actions you were trying to protect her from. You make the connection that it was an illness that caused you to be this way, and since you don't want to accidentally harm your mother (or worse), you subconsciously develop an irrational fear that at the time seems perfectly logical.

If this isn't clear, please take a moment to visit my profile and follow the links. If it still doesn't make sense, then don't stop reading, because this story was meant to raise awareness of the condition.

Anyway, I do appreciate the reviews, and I hope that this author's note explained everything a bit more (these are all things that were going to be brought up as the story progressed anyway). A big thanks to everyone! Continue to review and please feel free to catch any and all mistakes (just cite them so I can fix them).

Sorry, I can't remember if Eikichi is a girl or boy cat. I also apologize for straying in style; it's a very dialogue-centric fic so far.

**Disclaimer:** _Yu Yu Hakusho (C) Yoshihiro Togashi. _Also, there are references to _Spiral: Suiri no Kizuna, Iron Chef, Super Nintendo, _and _Star Fox_, all of which have their respective copyrights.

* * *

**Little Things**

_By Zelia Theb_

* * *

The roof was especially pleasant. The sun had all morning to kiss the cement, and it felt warm against the skin of those who sat on it. Yusuke's mind had been running since the night before, when he finally let Kurama become aware of how he felt about him. He was terrible at expressing any feelings, except those of anger, annoyance, and pissed off. They were all cousins in the Emotions family.

Kuwabara couldn't take it. Sure, it was nice and warm outside, and they a decent lunch period, but it was nearing the time to return to class and he wasn't about to have his lunch end in silence.

"So what's with Kurama?" he inquired.

"He's acting weird."

"You're acting weird, Urameshi," said Kuwabara, taking a sip from his juice. "What was all of that 'walk ahead of us' crap last night?"

"He's just acting weird," Yusuke replied. He neglected the little detail about how he had tried to kiss Kurama, not just because it would be strange of him to admit he was attracted to boys too, but because he was _rejected_. Men never admit rejection. It's always the other party's fault, somehow.

"You know why, right?"

That had almost sounded to Yusuke like Kuwabara _did_ know. "Obviously not. Why don't you enlighten me, _oh Great One_."

"Don't be a jerkface Urameshi, I'm just observant, that's all!"

_So observant you can't see the obvious resemblance between Hiei and Yukina?_ "Fine."

The taller scowled, and told him, "I think he's like, afraid to touch germs or something."

"Huh?" Yusuke was puzzled. "You mean like some sort of OCD or something?"

"Yeah," Kuwabara answered. "Did you wash your hands before eating at Mister Burger?"

"Nope!" the other replied, crossing his arms and taking pride in his poor hygiene. Typical boy.

"Yeah, well Kurama wiped off the table then went and did that."

"So that's why you elbowed me at the table, you bastard!"

"You were freaking out Kurama!"

_  
"Does this freak you out?"_

_"I guess it does."_

"I don't get it," Yusuke wondered, "why is he suddenly scared of germs?" _And why _my_ germs? _The teen's mood continued to sour.

"Prolly that thing he had a bit ago, remember?" A bell. "Shit, Urameshi, we're late!" Kuwabara sat up faster than his friend, which was not the least bit surprising. "Just make sure that you don't act like a total jerk next time you're around him! If he's got this problem we gotta help him out 'cause it's not healthy!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," remarked Yusuke, waving his friend off with one hand. It was then that he noticed the dirt in his fingernails, and made a note to actually take care of it when he got home.

* * *

Chemistry was one of Kurama's favorite classes. Oh, who was he kidding? He _loved_ school! All of the classes were his favorite. However, today, chemistry was inching ahead.

He got to wear latex gloves during the lab. So did everyone else in class. It was bliss.

* * *

Kurama didn't even shudder in the slightest when his mother handed him the phone. The euphoria from chemistry class hadn't worn off yet, and he didn't have school tomorrow, so he could be more selective about where he was and what he had to touch. He gave himself a minor reprieve from worry. He knew that he would occasionally have to feed his body a few germs here and there, and how harmful could his mother's be?

"Hello?"

_"Kurama!"_ It was Kuwabara. _"If you're not like, bombed with homework or anything, did ya wanna come over or something and hang out?"_

"Hmm, Yusuke was supposed to stop by today." An absent-minded hand came up to his lips.

_"Oh, he walked home with Keiko today. She's dragging him out to see some piano recital or something, some Kiyotaka guy, I think?"_

_Well, _Kurama thought, disheartened, _Yusuke is known for standing people up._ His euphoria was wearing off. He stated, "That sounds like fun, Kazu."

_"Cool. My sister is obsessed with Iron Chef and suddenly wants to learn how to cook Italian food, and plus I got this new game, ya know, that _Star Fox _game? Or we could watch this movie I just got."_

The Kuwabara's were good company. Sure, Shizuru was a smoker, but that didn't bother him too much. He'd been wanting to play _Star Fox_ ever since it came out, too.

_"Should I leave shortly?"_

"Whenever you want, man," Kuwabara replied. He looked at the broom in his hand and figured it would only take him a few minutes to sweep. Eikichi didn't shed as much as most cats, so it would be an easy task.

_"I'll be there in half an hour, Kazu."_

"Cool, see ya!"

_"Good bye."_ A click.

"Okay, he's comin' over," Kuwabara said to his sister as he hung up. "Whatcha makin' tonight?"

Shizuru turned a few pages back in the cookbook she was reading. A pack of cigarettes lay on the table where she was seated, next to an empty ashtray. She pointed to the page she was on, and said, "I think I'm gonna try this one here. Doesn't need a lot of ingredients."

"Looks good." Kazuma said, having walked over the table and bent over his sister's shoulder. "You're not going to poison us or anything, are ya?"

He was smacked in the arm. "Who the hell has been cooking for you every day? Do you _really_ think I'm gonna _poison_ you?"

"Hey!" her brother said, rubbing the sore spot on his arm. "I just don't want to freak out Kurama!"

"You keep saying that like I'm supposed to know what you mean. Why would that 'freak out' Kurama?"

"'Cause he's been freaking out about germs and stuff, I think he's got something goin' on with him." He remembered the broom in his hand and began to sweep.

"Ah, so _that's_ why you've been such a neat-freak today," Shizuru said, watching her brother sweep with great pleasure. She mentally slapped herself for using the word "freak." Kazuma would be disciplined for his abuse of the word later, especially if she was already beginning to pick up on it. "So what're you gonna do about it?"

"I dunno," he said, moving the clumping dust bunnies into a pile. Eikichi shed more than he thought. _Much_ more. That, or no one had swept in a while. "I think I'm just gonna try and work with it. He's no good to us if he's too freaked out to even take a train to get somewhere."

"It's that bad, huh?"

"Yeah." Now _that_ was one of the biggest balls of fur he had ever seen.

"He's a good kid," she admitted, "so I'll play along." She closed the book. "But don't think I'll go that easy on you if _you_ start going crazy."

"Nothin' less," he grinned. The pile of fur on the floor was bigger than a kitten.

"Guess I'll help ya out then. Did ya get the controllers?" She was talking about the game controllers for their Super Famicom, knowing full well that her brother had offered it up as a form of entertainment.

"Yeah."

An afterthought struck her. "You didn't use _water_, did you?" She recalled a remote control that was shorted out after he had lovingly cleaned it in the sink.

"Nope, I used some of that glass cleaner stuff with the ammonia. Just sprayed it on a cloth first." The fur was in the trash now. "That stuff kills germs, right?"

"Yeah." Her worries were abolished. "You're not so bad after all. If Yukina ever gets the hint, she might actually score a good husband."

The younger Kuwabara blushed. "I wouldn't make her lift a finger!"

"Careful, don't let all those tough guy friends of yours know that you're secretly a feminist."

"Hey! I have no problem admitting that anymore, I know alotta strong women!"

"Good answer."

The two siblings continued to clean for a few more minutes, attempting to kill off the remainder of the half hour. Kazuma made a note to change out of his school uniform in case his ally feared Sarayashiki germs too. He told his sister to make sure that she washed her hands and tied her hair back before cooking, earning himself a heavy bonk on the head.

"He's here," Shizuru said as her brother massaged his injury. She sensed the fox's presence nearing their door. She made it a point to recognize the energies of her brother's team. It was a neat parlor trick, but more so it helped her identify who was a friend or a foe.

The doorbell rang. Kazuma retrieved his hand from the lump on his head to open the door and greet Kurama. His hair was tied back as it had been the day before; it was just another part of his neurosis. If his hair didn't fly in his face, he wouldn't have to use a possibly dirty hand to fix it, thus preventing him from transferring the germs to his hair, which he couldn't wash as often or as readily as his hands. Otherwise it could create a circle of contamination.

"Hello Kazu, Shizuru," he said, stepping in and slipping his shoes off. "Thank you for having me."

"No prob," Shizuru responded. "I'll whip up dinner while you boys are playing."

"Jeez, sis! You make it sound like we're five or something!"

Kurama chuckled at his friend's reaction. "That sounds wonderful." He turned to Kazuma, and asked, "You mentioned something about _Star Fox_, did you not?" He would not pass up this chance. He would play _Star Fox_. He would fly the Arwing. He would see what the special FX chip could do. Plus, the main character was a _fox_!

"Oh yeah! It's so awesome!" He directed the two of them toward the family area as Shizuru retreated to the kitchen. The game system was set neatly on the ground with two controllers plugged in, the _Star Fox_ game cartridge sticking out of the top. "I only got through the first board, but we can play it again 'cause you gotta get used to the controls. We can take turns on the levels."

"I've been waiting to play this game for a while," Kurama said, sitting down on the clean floor with Kazuma. "I've read a lot about it."

Kazuma pressed a button on the television and switched the system on, then handed Kurama the first player controller. "Here, you can play the first level. I just cleaned it today."

The fox reluctantly accepted. "So," he said, "you've noticed."

_Shit_. "Uh, yeah...don't worry though."

"I am sorry." The game sat at the start screen. He could not tear his eyes away, or else he might end up spilling more emotion than he wished to.

"What? Naw, ya don't have to apologize or nothin'. If anything, Urameshi should be saying sorry for being such an idiot last night."

_"Does this freak you out?"_

_"I guess it does."_

"He doesn't seem to know. I do not want him to."

Kazuma gulped with guilt, wondering how he could go back in time and forget to point out what a jerk Yusuke had been during lunch. It would go against his nature, as that is what the two of them did, but he still hoped for the opportunity.

"Look, just relax, okay? Now you don't have to think about anything like that, we can just play the game all night and forget about stupid Urameshi and stupid Koenma and bad guy demons and just be two guys hanging out."

"You're right." A laugh escaped him as he faced the absurdity of his phobia. It wasn't as if he could just make it go away, but for some reason, it finally struck him as crazy. So he laughed. And then he pressed "start" as the game commanded.

The game was amazing. He decided to crash his Arwing just for the fun of seeing what happened.

"Don't boost _into_ the buildings!"

"I want to see what will happen."

"You explode."

"I like to know the limits of a game."

"You're gonna lose a life though!"

"Oops."

"You're supposed to boost so that the pillars _don't_ fall on you."

"I see that now."

Kazuma burst into laughter. "You did that on purpose!"

Kurama smiled back. "I did."

"Okay, my turn! I'll get us some double blasters for the next stage."

"You do that."

"Don't crash just 'cause you can!"

"I won't." Green eyes gleamed.

"Hey, you're intentionally being a bad liar!"

Another laugh. "I am. I'm sorry, I promise I will actually try to play the next board."

The night was just as fun as Kurama was hoping. At first, he had noticed the little things Kazuma had done just to ease the fox's worrying, but after dinner, the thoughts were almost out of his mind completely. The movie was exceptional as well. The Kuwabara's were wonderful hosts. He had been invited to stay the night as well, an invitation that he graciously excepted, hoping that it wouldn't be ruined by a mission.

The problem that Kurama was running into as he lay beside Kuwabara's bed was Yusuke. He wondered if Yusuke ever called, or if he came over like he thought that he would. Did Yusuke even like him? Why did he even care if the detective did or not?

Being a teenager was a lot harder than any dangerous job he had done as his former self.

Perhaps it was that dark past of his that was attracted to Yusuke. Had they met in his previous life, he may have just had his way with him. He rather liked the rough-around-the-edge type. Except that it would have been _him_ propositioning Yusuke in a dark alley, tangling his long fingers in the other's hair, pressing them chest to chest, and nipping at the other one as if to make it seem like there was no other choice than to give in to desire.

But he was Shuichi now. He liked being polite, intelligent, and _nice_. He liked to care for living things that weren't just plants. He liked being cared _for_.

A loud sound startled him. He sat up to see that it was just Kazuma, snoring, Eikichi dozing gracefully on his head. White sheets lay gently over the taller's form, giving glimpses of the developed muscle beneath. The fox observed his friend quietly, watching his body as it rose and set with every soft snort. He turned away when Kazuma woke up.

"Can't sleep?" he yawned, setting the cat beside him. "Hope it's not my snoring, I tend to do that."

"It's not. I was just thinking, that's all."

"It's Urameshi, isn't it?"

"May I ask you something?"

Another yawn, followed by the rustling of sheets. "Sure."

"How is it that you seem to know all of this?"

"I guess it's 'cause that's how I look when I'm frustrated about somethin' and can't sleep."

"Does that happen often?"

Kazuma squinted; since when was Kurama so candid? "Yeah."

"Why?" The fox wasn't sure why he was suddenly so talkative. He had been lonely, that was for sure. His thoughts were beginning to riot in his head, breaking windows and looting common sense. At home he spoke to his mother about school. On missions he spoke only of the demons and strategy. He'd never unloaded his days on anyone; hell, he hadn't even told any of his comrades much about his exploits in the Demon World. The only one of the four who would know anything about that would be Hiei, and even so, anything he would have heard was just that - hearsay.

Kazuma already knew of his...problem. The craziness that seemed to drain his very existence. What harm was there in talking about some regular human problems with him? Kazuma had a code, after all. He was trustworthy.

"I dunno, you guys kinda leave me outta the loop a lot." Kurama's eyes went wide; had he really been so terrible? "It's not just on missions, I just mean in general. It's like, Urameshi's s'posed to be my best friend, but all he ever does is grunt short answers and complain all the time. It kinda bugs me."

"I'm so sorry, it's-"

"Yeah, I know. I'm not exactly as privileged as you guys when it comes to Spirit World crap, and you all prolly think it's in my best interest not to know stuff, but it sucks." The sheets shifted again, falling off of Kazuma's body. "And then there's Yukina. I don't get to see her much, and it's kinda pointless to be in love with her. I'm prolly gonna be old and all wrinkly before she gets that I like her."

"Well," Kurama began, "the Ice Maidens aren't exactly known for their love of men." _Too callous._

"Yeah, Yusuke's mentioned that a buncha times to me. Sometimes he goes overboard on the whole jerk thing without even realizing it." Kuwabara let out a huff, "I mean, ya gotta wonder, does he even think before he acts?"

"I don't believe that he does, but that's what makes him such a great ally."

"Yeah, you're right." Kazuma sighed, raking a hand through his slightly bed-headed hair. "That's prolly what he did to you though, huh."

"I suppose you could say that."

"What happened?"

Kurama inhaled deeply and looked at the ceiling. Shifting slightly out of the futon, he set his back against Kazuma's bed frame and warned, "You may not want to know."

"It's that bad? Come on, we're venting here! He gets to do it all the time and we never get to have our say!"

"You may not like it."

"Don't leave me out just 'cause ya think I can't handle it," Kazuma reminded him.

"Very well." The events of the prior night replayed quickly in his mind. "He was concerned about my behavior yesterday."

"'Cause he's an idiot."

"Perhaps. But then he asked me to follow him into that alley where you left us."

"I was wondering where you guys went," he muttered. "He didn't try to start with ya, did he?"

"He attempted to kiss me."

"He what?" The response was immediate.

"He attempted to kiss me."

"Wait a second." Kazuma's voice became low and hushed. "Are you sayin' that Urameshi tried to plant one on you? Was he just trying to be an ass about the germ thing?" _No, he didn't know about that._ "Or..."

"The latter." The mattress against his head pulsated. Eikichi hopped down into Kurama's lap, purring as she settled into place.

"When you say attempted, you mean..."

"That he did not succeed."

"See?" Kazuma yelled in the most hushed whisper he could muster. "This is what I mean about him not tellin' me things! And if he likes you why the hell does he keep leading Keiko on? And...oh god..."

"What?"

"He tried kissin' me before too! Ugh, does that mean he likes me?"

The so-called ugly head of jealousy reared in Kurama, though he was unsure as to why. "When did this happen?"

"Well, it was only a dream, 'cause he wanted to get brought back to life and all, but still!"

The storm in his stomach dissipated. Kurama gently pet the feline in his lap, and remarked, "I am not certain of that, Kazu. It is possible."

Kazuma, in a sudden moment of clarity, realized that he may have accidentally insulted his friend. He stammered, "I mean, I just don't like the idea of Urameshi and I...'cause you know, we used to beat each other up all the time. I don't care about the liking guys thing, I guess...just, you know, uh, shocking? Not expected? Ugh, sorry Kurama."

"I understand."

"You like him, huh? That's why you were waiting for him to come over?"

"Yes...and no." Kurama let out a breath that he felt like he was holding forever. "I simply cannot bring myself to go near him. Not lately."

"Are ya gonna try, though? Like, ya know, start...something? A relationship?" The words felt uncomfortable falling out of his mouth. Kazuma never thought he would have a guy-to-guy talk about guys. It was too _taboo_.

"What are _you_ up to?" Kurama asked Eikichi as the cat crawled up his chest in an attempt to sit on his shoulder.

"Meow?" the animal replied.

"Eikichi likes faces."

Blowing some bits of fur out of his mouth, Kurama said, "I see that." Kazuma came to his rescue, lifting the cat up and putting him back on the bed. Removing the last bits of fur from his mouth, somewhat worried about the history of hands that have pet that fur before, he responded, "I don't think so. It wouldn't be wise. Were my teachers to catch word of such, I might be expelled."

"'Cause they're kinda closed-minded?"

"No," Kurama said. "I think it would have more to do with Yusuke's reputation. They would probably not want his name to mar the school."

"Hey, have they heard of the great Kuwabara over there too?" Kazuma's eyes were wide and beady, hoping that perhaps they had, even though he was trying to create a more academic reputation for himself.

"No, I'm afraid."

"Damn Urameshi," Kazuma cursed.

"Also, it would put the team at risk."

"Huh, ya got a point there." Kazuma rubbed his chin in thought. "I guess that means you probably never dated anyone here on Earth."

"You would be correct," the fox affirmed. "It would put them in danger were anyone from my past, or I suppose present, try to find me."

"Guess we're in the same boat then," Kazuma pouted. "We're doomed to be lonely!" The younger Kuwabara fell backwards onto the mattress, an opportunity that Eikichi took full advantage of.

Kurama let out a teenaged sigh. "This may be true, Kazu."

"Urameshi's kinda your best bet though. At least he's able to fend off the bad guys."

"He's the Spirit Detective. Off-limits. Botan might murder me as well."

A delightfully malevolent snicker that was almost too loud for the middle of the night reverberated off of the walls of Kazuma's bedroom. He decided to share his evil idea, and suggested, "You could always try Hiei."

"Hah!" The laugh was also almost too loud for the middle of the night. "You can't be serious. I don't know if I'd be able to survive a sword in the stomach after each misunderstanding, which I am sure that we would have a lot of."

"I'm no fan of Hiei, but do ya really think he'd stab ya that much?"

"It would not be the first time."

"What!"

"To be fair, it wasn't exactly intentional on his part."

"Why the hell did he stab you?"

"He actually meant to stab Yusuke." Worry painted itself on Kazuma's face, in addition to betrayal. Kurama recognized that as a sign of feeling left out. "That is, during their first battle," the fox clarified. "I had to repay Yusuke for saving the life of myself and my mother-"

"That little shit! I can't believe he never told me any of this! Damn Urameshi, I can't believe he left out all that crap when he told he about how he got started!" He heard an angry shush come from the hallway. Letting his voice fall back into a whisper, he asked, "So was it bad?"

"Again, yes and no. The sword Hiei was wielding at the time was an Artifact of Darkness. It left quite the scar."

"Hey man, ya don't have to tell me twice about those. Least they don't hurt after they heal."

"You're quite lucky, Kazu."

A fine-haired eyebrow arched at the remark. "Does yours still hurt?"

"This particular one does, every now and then."

"Ya don't show it."

"I try not to."

Kazuma's eyes darted over to his alarm clock. It was late. He wasn't tired.

"Wanna play more _Star Fox_?"

"Absolutely."

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:**

Not what I had intended at all for this chapter - the conversation sort of wrote itself. The story seems to want to revolve around their lives as teenagers off of the cases.

I apologize for the lack of Hiei again. And the pseudo-Yusuke bashing. I love both characters very much. It just seemed like there was some angst inside of Kuwabara that needed to be released. The fandom hardly pays attention to Kuwabara, which is a shame because Yusuke would be dead if it weren't for the efforts of he and Keiko.

Though I think Eikichi may have a critical role in this fic.

Thanks for reading!

-Z


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note:**

Boy love. A twist. Some angst. Teenagers. Enjoy.

**Disclaimer:** _Yu Yu Hakusho __ Yoshihiro Togashi. Star Fox is also not mine._

* * *

**Little Things**

_By Zelia Theb_

* * *

They did it. They finished _Star Fox_. Only on the first difficulty, but they still did it. There were two other possible routes to take to the final stage, and they were getting their asses kicked. Kuwabara had made a vow with Kurama that he wouldn't play the game without him, since they had both contributed to their first victory. The problem was Kurama's schoolwork. He was only able to join Kuwabara on their days off, and even then, Kurama wasn't able to spend the night. The schoolwork was catching up to him.

There was also another problem contributing to the piles of schoolwork that the fox found himself buried beneath. He had been skipping school. In the morning, he'd wake up in a sweat, and then remember a way he had 'slipped up' the day before, be it by accidentally touching the wrong desk, or a door handle. This led him to thoughts of contamination and a possible illness, which then led to minor anxiety attacks. Those attacks only made it worse, mostly because it was difficult to ascertain that the anxiety was what gave him those _very_ real symptoms he experienced. Needless to say, he missed at least one day of school a week because of this problem. His mother was beginning to crack down on him; he was only allowed to see Kuwabara for two or three hours on those days off.

Shiori had recently spoken to one of her son's teachers. Kurama's grades were less than perfect. He wasn't exactly at the same level of Yusuke, in fact, he wasn't in danger of failing at all. The grades were simply on the decline, mostly because he was having trouble with attendance and keeping up with the missed work, but partly due to the fact that his condition was filling his mind with thoughts of itself instead of school. He was losing focus.

So she made him a deal. He needed to _start_ focusing, and had to make it through one week of school without missing a day. She would then allow him to stay at his friend's house on their days off and let the two of them finish that _Star Fox_ game that they'd been rambling on about for weeks. Were he to break this deal, he would not be allowed to leave the house.

It was a punishment he wasn't exactly sure that he would mind. However, Kuwabara had been _very_ patient with him, and pretty much the only person who helped alleviate those meddlesome thoughts of his. He also feared the disappointment of his mother more than anything, so he agreed to the terms.

Yusuke, on the other hand, had disappeared completely. No phone calls, no visits, not even so much as a "Hello" to be passed on by Kuwabara. Even Hiei had made an appearance one day as Kurama was coming home from school. Yusuke? Gone.

So Kurama was quite surprised when, after having kept his deal with his mother despite feeling sick earlier that morning, Kuwabara mentioned him.

"Urameshi came to school with a hickey today."

Kurama paused their game. "A hickey?"

"Yeah, you know, a little bruise on his-"

"I _know_ what a hickey is." Kurama unpaused the game, pressed the button for a bomb, and defeated a few enemy ships. "And if you're thinking that they are from me, you are mistaken."

"I wasn't thinkin' that! I was just makin' conversation." Kuwabara sighed, "Sorry man, just wanted to make fun of him."

"That's not exactly what happened now, is it?"

_Shit shit shit shit shit._ "Keiko slapped him for it."

"_Good_." A friendly Arwing flew across the screen, asking for help. "He should know better than to show up to school with that." The friendly Arwing was down. _Damn, we just can't get by this part of the board._ Then their Arwing was hit. It exploded. Kurama abruptly passed the controller over to his friend.

"Look man, I'm sorry! I wasn't thinking."

"You weren't."

Kuwabara paused the game, set the controller on the floor, and then turned to the irate fox. "I wasn't tryin' to be a jerk to you. I totally forgot about Urameshi anyway! It's not like you mentioned him at all for weeks or anythin'."

"Probably because he hasn't bothered to speak to me in weeks."

"Oh..." _That jerk!_ "Not since-"

"No."

"Oh." Kuwabara felt his anger rising. Sure, it was his idiot self that brought it up, but if the hickey wasn't from Keiko, and it wasn't from Kurama, then his friend was hiding something. "Do you care if we finish this right now?"

"Not entirely." Kurama's chest rose with each steady, furious breath.

"I don't think I've ever seen ya so mad outside of a mission."

"I am _not_ mad."

"You're real mad, 'cause you're bein' mean to me and I didn't even do anything but make a mistake."

"I..." Kurama let out one of those angry breaths that he had been holding. He found himself doing that a lot lately. "I apologize, Kazu." A chuckle, followed by another heavy sigh. "I am not sure how to deal with being a teenager again."

"How did ya deal with it in the Demon World?" Kazuma turned off the console, then the television.

"My mother nor the police would be happy with that solution."

Almond eyes went wide."I forgot that you're kinda dangerous." Kazuma glanced at the clock. "It's still early in the day. Wanna go yell at Urameshi?"

"You have no idea."

"You really like him."

"I have no idea."

"We gotta get some ideas circumventing around here," Kazuma joked.

"Circulating?" Kurama corrected.

"That too." The two of them stood. "Let's go!"

* * *

Atsuko, Yusuke's mother, wasn't home. It was convenient. The two of them easily barged into the place, which had also been conveniently (or absent-mindedly) unlocked.

_"Urameshi!"_ Kuwabara announced in front of the detective's closed bedroom door. _"You better not be doing anything gross in there, 'cause we're comin' in!"_

"We?" Yusuke put out his cigarette and set down the manga he _was_ reading before their interruption, and swore, "Damn it. This better not be another mission!"

_"It's not! We're coming in!"_

"Fine!"

The door opened, revealing Kuwabara and Kurama. Yusuke immediately sat up and glared at Kuwabara, paying no attention to Kurama.

"Urameshi! You punk! What's up with that hickey?"

"This?" Yusuke held a hand over the spot on his neck for a moment. "_This?_ It's not a hickey! Damn it, how many times do I have to say that to everyone!"

Kurama held a blank gaze on his face as he studied the teen's room. It was quite tidy in comparison to the rest of the apartment. It was surprising to him, though he could have done without the smoke. He had gotten used to Shizuru smoking outside.

"It is! You really upset Keiko today!" _Better not slip up that Kurama told me what happened_. "You've even got 'em on the other side! You dog!"

Yusuke was angry. He just got home from detention and wanted to hang out and relax. Keiko was pissed at him, his teachers were pissed at him, Kuwabara was obviously pissed at him, and now Kurama probably was too. _What the hell is he doing here anyway?_ He didn't need Kurama thinking that he had gone out and gotten hickeys; he didn't want Kurama to know about the marks, _period_. However, the dark-haired boy couldn't avoid the accusations, and had to come up with something. Ferocious, he stood and stomped over to Kuwabara. He lifted his chin so that he could display his neck, and demanded, "Do these _look_ like hickeys to you?"

"Yes!" Kuwabara replied.

"No." Kurama recognized the pattern very clearly. "You were strangled. Those are bruises left by fingers."

"Damn straight they are." Yusuke scowled at Kuwabara, and exclaimed, "I told you they weren't hickeys, ass!"

"_You're_ the ass, ass! Why couldn't you just tell that to everyone!"

"'Cause I wasn't supposed to tell everyone that I had a case! What the hell!"

"I trust that the one who did this to you was defeated?" Kurama asked, feeling the need to protect Yusuke. He was relieved when Yusuke nodded, adding in that it was not a problem once he was able to breathe again.

"Well, fine," Kuwabara added. "That's all I had to say and I said it. Now I know. I'm gonna wait outside, Kurama's gotta talk to ya." With that, he left. He wished he could stay around, just in case Yusuke tried anything, but he knew that Kurama was angry. He didn't _like_ Kurama when he was angry.

"So, what's up?" Yusuke said, as if nothing had just occured.

"What's up?" Kurama's eyelids narrowed. "You do realize that you haven't spoken to me in weeks."

"That's just how it works, man. The four of us only really hang out when we gotta do something for suckerface."

"I see. So you make it a habit to _lie_ to your allies." His narrowed eyes flickered a shade of honey before returning to their angry green glimmer.

"What're you talking about?" Yusuke swallowed hard. He had to admit, he was scared. Kurama was partially right, and Kurama was also partially demon. Especially at that moment; he had seen that glint of yellow before. He wasn't speaking to Shuichi.

"You _know_ what I am speaking of, Yusuke."

Scared, but not careful. "Kinda like when you lied about your mood? Couldn't tell me about the whole germ thing?"

_Kuwabara,_ Kurama deduced. _He must have said something the next night._ "It was, and still is, none of _your_ concern."

"Psh. Like hell it isn't. Whatever you had a while ago really screwed you up. You think that isn't a concern to me?" Yusuke's energy flared within. "I like you, damn it. You're disgusted by me, and you've got major issues now."

"It's hardly an issue that I'd like _you_ to take care of."

"Oh really?" Yusuke's voice took on a sarcastic tone. "That's why you're so mad at me for not coming to see you that day? Bull shit, Kurama. You like me too."

"What of it?"

"You won't kiss me. What's the point of trying anything with you?"

The fox's voice grew increasingly deep and nasty. "Maybe you should have said _nothing_, then. I would not make it a habit of leading people on if I were you."

"Wow, you've really lost it, haven't you?" Yusuke laughed, then quickly regretted doing so.

Kurama stepped forward. "You are _mistaken._"

"I'm not. And I didn't lead you on. And I did visit you."

A laugh escaped the Youko's throat. "You continue to lie, even now."

"Okay, that's it!" Yusuke declared. "I'm not lying and I'm gonna prove it! You're acting way off the wall and I'm not gonna go through this again with you."

"Again?" Kurama was puzzled; whatever was this boy speaking of?

"Yes, again." Yusuke grabbed Kurama's right hand, gripped _hard_, and brought it to his neck.

Kurama, who had been holding his hands in fists, slowly let his hand blossom. His fingers perfectly lined up with the bruises. Yusuke had lied, but not maliciously. The anger diminished, turning into trembles and shock. He pulled his hand away and stepped back, but just as he had done in the alley weeks ago, Yusuke would not have any of that.

"I'm sorry, Kurama," he said, pulling Kurama into a fierce embrace. "Don't be scared of me, not now, okay? We gotta figure out what's going on here."

"It is not you that I am scared of," Kurama whispered. He could not even recall when he had done that to Yusuke. Even worse, this meant that he was still sick, or at least being affected by something. He wasn't being careful enough.

He could infect Yusuke.

But Yusuke would not let go.

"I want you back, Kurama," Yusuke admitted, nuzzling into the other's ear. "We'll go from there, if ya want. I'm gonna go see Grandma tomorrow. I was gonna go alone, but you should prolly come with me."

"I should," Kurama reluctantly agreed. "Now please let me go." _Before you catch whatever it is that I have._

"Not until you agree to tell Kuwabara."

"He is in danger. I am not going to stay around anyone."

_He smells so good_. "I'm going to tell him then. Nothing bad is gonna happen. You guys can hang out or whatever tonight. We'll all go to see Genkai tomorrow."

"Let me go, Yusuke." The thoughts did not cease. The anxiety was rising. How could he face his mother? What if Shiori had been the one to get strangled during a black-out? Kurama didn't want to think about it, but the thoughts were as relentless as the hand stroking his hair.

"Do I have to?" Yusuke whined, hoping to lighten the mood.

"Please," Kurama begged.

Yusuke began trailing kisses along the redhead's jaw. "You haven't agreed to tell Kuwabara."

"Do I have to?" the fox came back with, twisting Yusuke's own question. His resolve and terror was weakening with every touch. The stabbing he had initially felt had faded into pleasure. This distraction of his mind was a surprisingly decent medicine.

The detective laid another gentle kiss on Kurama's chin, then began working his way along the other side of his face. "I can do this all night."

"I may not be opposed to that," Kurama answered with a grin. The scent of smoke no longer bothered him, and he eased into Yusuke's embrace.

"You feel so good right now that I don't think I'm going to give you back to him," Yusuke uttered, rubbing his hands along the small of Kurama's back. He'd wanted this for a long time; perhaps all that hickey talk was worth it.

The pleasure stopped as someone cleared their throat. They heard a door click in the next room. The two of them parted as Kuwabara came back inside.

"I'm not gonna wait down there forever, guys."

"Sorry, Kazu," Kurama said. "Would it be okay for Yusuke to join us tonight?"

"Uh, I guess," Kuwabara answered, scratching his neck. "Why?"

"'Cause we're going to see Grandma tomorrow."

"We are?" Kuwabara looked to Kurama for confirmation, and received it. "Okay. But we're finishing that game tonight!"

Yusuke, who was about to start packing a change of clothes, paused. "What game?"

"You can't play, you have to watch!" Kuwabara spout out possessively.

"Whatever," Yusuke laughed, "I _like_ to watch."

"Gross!" exclaimed Kuwabara in horror.

"He can play too, I don't mind," offered up Kurama.

"No way!" Daggers plunged into Kuwabara's heart. "That's _our_ thing; he's not gonna ruin it!"

"I can watch, whatever!" Yusuke stuffed a shirt into a backpack.

"Uh," Kuwabara tapped his head with his finger. "I'm not sure how many spare thingies we have..."

"I don't have any here," the detective replied, reaching for a pair of jeans. "Just share the bed or something."

"Ugh! I'm not gonna share the bed with you!" Kuwabara protested.

"Uh, you can share with Kurama?" Yusuke offered, brows lifted into the "are you not thinking at all?" face. He also wasn't particularly enthused about having any accidental embarassing moments with Kuwabara (or not-so accidental ones with Kurama).

"Fine," Kuwabara agreed, hoping that Kurama wouldn't be too freaked out about his germs while they slept. "That fine with you?"

The fox blushed. "That is fine."

"Great," Yusuke said, zipping up the backpack. _I can still smell him on my skin._ "Let's go."

_To Be Continued..._


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note:**

Boy love.

Also, ever talk to yourself? If you're alive, you probably have. That kind of occurs in this chapter. Please don't interpret it as Youko Kurama talking to Shuichi. It is Kurama talking to himself. Just like a normal person would.

Sorry, Hiei has disappeared. I have no idea where he went. I can't imagine him caring much about teenaged woes anyway.

Please review. Thanks!

**Disclaimer:** _Yu Yu Hakusho __ Yoshihiro Togashi. Star Fox is also not mine._

* * *

**Little Things**

_By Zelia Theb_

* * *

The boys never did get around to playing _Star Fox_ again. When they returned to the Kuwabara residence, Shizuru was there, and announced that she'd found a deck of playing cards. The four of them ended up playing poker all night, the bets being candy, of course, but only because Kurama felt wrong betting his mother's money. Yusuke and Shizuru ended up winning most of the games. Kurama was bombing on purpose, because Kuwabara was doing terrible.

When it came to sleeping, that's when Kurama's troubles started again. Yusuke fell asleep like it was no problem. Kuwabara seemed to be sleeping okay as well, which was nice because he was rather good at sharing the bed. On his own, he would spread out and occupy every inch. With someone else though, it was as if he subconsciously knew he couldn't move.

It felt good to lay next to Kazuma. There was no threat of his personal space being invaded. The bed was most definitely clean, as was the body of his friend. Plus, he was _warm_. It would have been perfect if Yusuke wasn't sleeping soundly below them.

"Meow," Eikichi said, gracefully landing on Kurama's chest.

"Hey there," Kurama whispered, patting the cat on his head.

"Meow?"

"Ditto," he whispered back. Eikichi continued his prowl along the bed as Kurama thought about his own prowling.

What had caused him to go into such a frenzy? Was it the illness? Was part of him not agreeing with another part? Why would his demon genetics take on an entirely different personality, let alone one not familiar with Yusuke?

Would he attack them both in the middle of the night?

That was it. The major reason he could not fall asleep. He didn't want to be out of control, not again. It was bad enough that he flinched at the tiniest of coughs, or shook with anxiety at the mere touch of another.

Yusuke had been _so_ close to him. _So close_. A tingling swept over his jawline, despite that he had washed his face as soon as they returned to Kuwabara's. _It's gone, Kurama._

_But if you roll over, your face will touch the part of the pillow that your hair was on, and he touched your hair._

_I just won't roll over. That'll work._

Distraction. He needed a distraction. It worked earlier, didn't it? That's why Yusuke was able to get so close to him, because his attention was not focused on those relentless thoughts. Those poisonous, relentless, and charismatic thoughts.

"You okay Kurama?" Kazuma whispered.

"I'm having trouble sleeping."

"Is it 'cause of my snoring again? Sorry, man." A tired yet quiet yawn escaped him. "Eikichi, come on, go sleep on Urameshi."

"Meow?" A low thump was heard as the cat jumped off of the bed.

"You haven't snored yet, actually."

"Am I kickin' ya?"

"No, you're rather polite."

"Wanna go to the kitchen? Everyone's prolly asleep so we can talk down there."

"Sure."

Quietly, they escaped the bed without Yusuke noticing. They slipped downstairs with ease and seated themselves at the kitchen table. A pack of cigarettes sat alone on its surface.

"My sister's up," Kazuma observed.

"It's okay." Kurama smelled the smoke outside; she wasn't much of a threat to their conversation, so he didn't worry.

"Is it cool to ask what you two talked about?"

"Aside from him telling me about those bruises, there wasn't much. We argued the merits of his lies."

"Until he said that." Kazuma stretched back a little, and asked, "But are you guys, ya know, going out or whatever?"

"I'm not certain."

"What a jerk."

"It's my fault, actually."

"Oh, well you're not a jerk."

"I don't feel as comfortable as I'd like to." _In fact, I actually felt more comfortable with you._

"Did something happen again?" Kazuma folded his arms on the table and let his head rest on them. "Sorry, I'm listening, just trying to stay awake."

"You better be, you're a pretty privileged person."

"Heh, ya mean 'cause the great Youko Kurama has all of his heart to heart talks with me?"

"Precisely," Kurama grinned.

"I'm listening."

"Something happened."

Kuwabara scrunched his face. _Ugh, Urameshi and Kurama._

"It appears that I've grossed you out."

"Not really," Kazuma mumbled into his arms.

"You made a face."

"Sorry."

"Does it bother you?"

"Huh?" Kazuma lifted his head a little. "No."

"It seems like it does," Kurama prodded.

"It's Urameshi that bothers me. He's always so smug. And those eyebrows, too. What's up with his thick eyebrows?"

Kurama stifled his laughter. "You're _jealous_!"

"Well why does he get all the girls and I get none?"

The fox mimicked his friend's position, and stated, "He's charming."

"So what, I've got more charm in my pinky than he has in his whole body."

They heard the door. Shizuru came back inside. She waved to them quickly, caring not to intrude on their conversation, and walked upstairs to her bedroom.

"Night Sis," the younger Kuwabara said quietly.

Waiting until the footsteps could no longer be heard, Kurama remarked, "Well, I could tell you how handsome you are, but that would make you uncomfortable, so I shall refrain."

"You're not making me feel better," Kazuma pouted. "Yusuke gets girls _and_ guys. All I want is one girl. Hmmph. What do you see in him, anyway?"

Kurama wasn't sure of how to answer the classic question. "It's...not something you want the details on."

"Yeah, I do."

"Are you aware that some day I might have to kill you?" Kurama asked.

"Yeah, great thief, yada yada. Learning secrets."

Kurama's lips formed a demonic smile. "It's _explicit_."

"You're just messing with me now," Kazuma yawned.

Kurama chuckled, "Am I? Maybe I want to tell you all of the _explicit_ thoughts I've had for Yusuke. I even have a bushy brow fetish."

The other teen's eyes were wider than they should have been for someone so tired. "You've got to be messing with me. Aren't you like, way too polite to even know the word fetish?"

"I added in the bit about the brow fetish," Kurama admitted.

"Okay, can we stop being gross for a second?" Kazuma pleaded. "What happened?"

"He tried to kiss me again."

A curious eyebrow arched. "And?"

"He succeeded."

"Ew! He had his tongue down your throat while I was waiting outside?"

This time it was Kurama who had made the face. "Oh, no, not on my lips."

"Ahh." Kazuma appeared relieved. "I guess that's what you meant when you talked about bein' comfortable." He adjusted, correcting the way that his arms were layered, and said, "Guess he got closer than last time though, so he doesn't freak you out that much."

Kurama blinked slowly and yawned. "I was distracted."

"What a creep..." Kazuma figured Yusuke would have had to use a dirty trick to nab Kurama.

"No," the other corrected, "my mind was distracted. I didn't have a chance to dwell on anything."

"Kinda like when we play the game?"

_It happens then too, doesn't it?_ "Yes, I suppose you're right."

"Don't kill me, okay?" Kazuma started. "But I gotta say something." Kurama nodded as much as he could in his position. "I think it's great that you can cool the jets on this thing, but ya can't distract it forever."

"Really?" Kurama replied with sarcasm. "Because I was thinking of moving in with you."

"Hey man, I'm not gonna go on and give ya the speech or anything. I just wanted to say that. Ya know I'm here for ya, man."

"Forgive me," Kurama requested with half-lidded eyes. "I'm sleepy."

"I'm not used to this whole verbal fighting thing. Aren't you supposed to punch me, call me an idiot, and put me in my place?"

"And then have you do the same to me?" Kurama quipped. "Hardly. You've already got two people in your life who fill that role." The fox fought off another yawn.

"We can go back to bed if you want."

With hesitation, Kurama answered, "Perhaps."

"You wanna new pillow, don't you." Kazuma wasn't as stupid as everyone made him out to be. He had seen that look before; a few weeks ago, during a rather windy day, Kurama's hair was whisked out of its tie. He had no choice but to fix it when it happened, but also hadn't had the chance to wash his hands first. He had trouble sleeping that night as well.

"...No."

"What'd he do?" Kazuma gulped. _Urameshi's hands, yuck. Could never stand to feel them all over me_. "Grope your hair or somethin'?"

"...Maybe."

"Well, I've got ya covered!" Kazuma announced. "Urameshi's actually been tryin' to pay attention to his hygiene and stuff lately, and he even cleaned his room since I was there last, so I don't think ya got anything to worry about."

"Hah! I've completely lost it, haven't I?"

"Not completely." Pain soared through his arm. "Hey! What the hell!"

Kurama, smiling, stood and tucked in his chair. "I thought that's what you wanted?"

"Nuh uh!" Kazuma caressed the sore spot. "Ya caught me off guard!"

"Don't underestimate the great Youko Kurama," Kurama remarked, feigning seriousness.

"I swear, it's like I don't even know ya anymore."

"You wish."

Kazuma followed his friend back up the stairs. "Never in a million years."

_To Be Continued..._


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note:**

Sorry. This story has a mind of its own. I love when that happens.

Except for the part of it that takes a page from PirateMych's Glorious Exhaust. Which was unintentional until I stepped back and said, "Oh crap. I recently read a story with that very same idea in it. Idiot."

So, go read that story first (it's in my favorites). All credit for that idea goes to PirateMych. I won't say what the idea is, so that I don't spoil this chapter and that story for you.

Anyway, because of the whole "story has a mind of its own" thing, there are some Kuwabara-Kurama undertones that may accidentally develop on top of the blatant Yusuke-Kurama ones.

Please review!

**Disclaimer:** _Yu Yu Hakusho __(c) Yoshihiro Togashi. _

* * *

**Little Things**

_By Zelia Theb_

* * *

_"Spirit Gun!"_

A brisk breeze sent cherry-blossom waves flying. Bluish-green light faded fast. Genkai set down her tea, looked beyond the walls of the room toward the source of her annoyance, and shouted, "Hey! Dimwit! Watch where you're aiming that thing!"

_"I didn't break anything!"_

Genkai cast a hand behind her, let loose a wave of invisible energy, and picked up her tea again.

_"Sheesh, Grandma!"_ Yusuke rushed into the room, holding his neck, and asked, "How the hell did ya pull that one off?"

"I'm amazing, remember?" she said, smug.

_"Urameshi! Get your ass back out here!"_

"Yes, dimwit," the psychic concurred. "Get your ass back out there and train. While you're at it, try to figure out how I did that."

"Do ya really want me wailing on Kuwa-" He couldn't finish. He flew out the door.

"I told you to get your ass back out there!" Settling back down, Genkai looked across the low table to continue the conversation she was having with Kurama, who was kneeling opposite of her, also drinking tea.

Kurama had told her almost everything that had happened, minus the Yusuke hitting on him part. She sent the other two boys out to the field to train, figuring it would keep them busy enough to stay out of the business she now had to attend to. She decided that it would be best to brew a relaxing tea while they talked, and encouraged Kurama to drink it once it was done.

"How are you feeling now?"

"Better," he answered.

"You believe you are still afflicted?"

"I do. There is no other explanation."

"Did you ever go to the doctor when you were sick?"

_Sick._ The word itself brought him back to the moment. "Yes."

"What was the diagnosis?"

"A common cold."

"Did you believe them?"

"Who has that powerful of a cold?" he replied. "For that long?" The idea lacked logic.

"What I suppose I am asking now, is what did you do before this happened?"

"Nothing out of the ordinary."

"You can continue to do that," she reminded him.

"I don't know the source," he defended.

"Yet you've already decided in your head that it's these germs."

His eyes turned into dangerously narrow green slits. "It is the only logical conclusion."

"You're wrong." She set down her tea and walked over to where he was, and demanded, "Stand up. I'm going to use Reiki to scan you." After Kurama complied, she held her hands out in front of her, and without making contact, ran them along his body. Her fingers began to tingle, signaling the need for energy transfer, and she stopped.

"What is it?"

"Your stomach. What's the deal?"

"I have pains from time to time," he told her.

"You've got pretty crappy defense, Kurama. I know you've been hit critically there a few times. Is there any reason why my hands started to flare up with healing energy when I passed over it?"

"There...was this time..."

"I'm waiting," she firmly stated, arms crossed and toe tapping.

"...when Hiei, myself, and a third demon broke into a vault in Spirit World."

"And you stole the three Artifacts of Darkness." She knocked him on the forehead. "Do you mean to tell me that you were stabbed by that sword?"

"Yes."

"Knowing its power, you didn't dodge its wielder?"

"Its wielder was Hiei. And I purposefully put myself between the blade and Yusuke."

"That _dimwit_."

"I had previously resigned myself to death, Genkai. It was a thought that I was under the influence of when I made the rash decision."

"Be careful, fox, or else _you'll_ graduate from 'idiot' to 'dimwit.' Now take that shirt off."

Once again, he did as he was told. She explained to him that the sword's power still had an effect on him, which could account for his 'inexplicable' and immemorable demonic transformations. The psychic held her hands out and warned Kurama to stay calm. An explosion of energy set the room on fire with a sapphire hue. She focused the gentle flames onto the alabaster scar that traversed his abdomen, in an attempt to purify the wound. Kurama meditated as best as he could, allowing himself to be splashed by the waves of energy that hit him like refreshing water. Kuwabara and Yusuke, wondering what exactly those spikes of energy were, caught the tail end of the healing process, but did not interrupt with their entry. They knew better.

"There," she said as the flames died down. "If the pains come back, come and see me. But make sure that they are real, first." She turned to the two patient boys, and asked, "Did ya figure it out?"

Yusuke's gaze on Kurama's form broke. "What, that flying thing? Hell no!"

"Pay attention, Dimwit!"

"What? Ah!"

Genkai had sent him flying backwards again, and continued to do so in small pulses as she "walked him out."

_"Damn it, fossil!"_

_"I said, pay attention!"_

"Hey," Kazuma said, walking over to a redressing Kurama. "Is that the one?"

With a blush-tinted face, the redhead replied, "Yes." Reaching around the back of his head, a thought held him in place. _Don't fix it, your hands aren't clean._ Impulsively, he moved to the nearest basin, set to wash his hands. A hand on his shoulder stopped him.

"Kurama?" Kazuma's gruff voice beckoned. "Could you teach me somethin'?"

"What?" he replied, hands hovering over the basin.

"I wanna learn some of that plant stuff you do."

"Let me do this, Kazu."

"Do what?" Kazuma decided to play stupid. He was going to start helping Kurama nip this thing in the butt, especially since it seemed like Genkai had taken care of whatever it was that caused it in the first place.

"_This_, Kazu," Kurama said, frustrated. _Just wash and go. Just wash and go. Just wash and go. Just wash and go. Just wash and go. Just wash and go._

"What was it that Genkai did? It looked pretty cool."

_Shut up. Shut up. Go away. Just wash and go. _"It was a purification spell."

"Cool."

_Shut up shut up go away just wash and go shutupshutupshutupgoawayjustwashand-_

"So that means it purified you of everything," Kazuma interrupted, though not entirely sure if what he suggested was true. "You probably won't need to do that then."

First it was a low chuckle, then the unmistakable release of long pent up laughter. "You're quite right!" Kurama agreed between laughs.

"Your hair's really messed up."

"I'll tend to that," he muttered, doing just as he said.

"Are ya gonna teach me?"

Kurama gave Kazuma a bewildered stare. "You were serious?"

"Yeah!" Kazuma explained. "You guys always get to have all the fun. Even Urameshi gets to have all these cool moves! I just get a stupid spirit sword that sometimes I can turn into different shapes and that's it!"

"That's all it is, you know." The fox demon nodded his head toward the door. "We can go around the back and stay out of their way."

"Gotcha." As he followed behind his long-locked friend, a question he'd been meaning to ask him popped into his head. "Hey, I gotta weird question for ya."

"What is it?" he said, leading them down a gentle slope covered in vibrant blades of grass.

"So, like, when you were little, you were aware of stuff, right?"

"Yes..."

"Soooooooo...were you ever in diapers? I mean, 'cause-" Kuwabara stumbled to the side. "I'm just wonderin'! Ya don't have to push me!"

An innocent look took Kurama's face. "Why, whatever do you mean, Kazu? You tripped over a rock, don't you remember?"

"You pushed me!" Kazuma accused.

"I did no such thing."

"Whatever, ya don't have to answer I guess."

"You know, any way I would answer would undoubtedly lead to more questions."

"How d'ya figure?" Kazuma questioned.

"Well," Kurama said, stopping them at their training grounds, "if I'd said 'no,' you'd wonder how my mother would have dealt with a child who was potty trained from the get-go. If I had said 'yes,' you would have probably mentioned how gross it would be to sit in a diaper, doing things on purpose, and making someone else clean up after me. There is also the third option."

"Third?" Kazuma sat in the grass.

"Yes, third," Kurama answered. He eyed the grass wearily before concluding that he would have to get dirty anyway. _I am probably already immune to any germs here._ "The fact that after I planted myself in my mother's womb-"

"Ew..."

"...I lost awareness of my demon self until my energy was somewhat rejuvenated."

"The third answer is the easiest."

"It is."

"But is it true?"

"Wouldn't you like to know!" Kurama laughed. "Forgive me for being rather sexist, but that was a rather typical and crude statement."

"Typical!" Kazuma screeched, his voice cracking in response. "How am I typical?"

"A typical boy?"

"Yeah!"

"Well, comparitively speaking, you are sitting next to a queer demon that is also sort of human, but not quite a hybrid, nor two separate beings in one."

"You've lost me. Not the queer part, but the other stuff."

"You're stuck on queer."

Kazuma looked down and played with the grass between his fingers. "Sorta," he replied sheepishly.

"I'm using it in the homosexual sense of the word."

The carrot-top was embarrassed and blushing. "Yeah, I know. I just thought, that uh, ya know."

"That I wasn't completely over the edge?"

"No, that's not what I would say." The sun felt a lot warmer to Kazuma than it had earlier. "Ya know. That you might like a girl here or there."

"You might be correct," Kurama said, remembering a girl he was friends with at the time he met Hiei.

"Ah," Kazuma let out, uncomfortable. _I wonder if he's ever thought about me._

Kurama, aware of the discomfort his sexuality created, studied those fingers massaging the blades of grass. "Do you still want to do this?"

"Do what?"

"The 'plant stuff.' Do you still want to learn it?"

_Oh, that._ Kazuma snapped out of his trance. "Yeah. Sorry." He laughed nervously. "Just not used to talking about this yet."

A light breeze washed over the grass, touching their faces with a reminder of nature. It felt good to Kurama. _Really_ good. Kazuma was turning out to be an excellent distraction. The notice from the wind was all the afflicted one needed to dig his fingers into the dirt and urge a few blades of grass to untangle themselves.

"Here," Kurama said, offering Kazuma the clump of dirt with the grass growing from it. "Take this."

Kazuma willingly accepted the clump, which was dwarfed in comparison to his large hands. "What now?" he asked, cupping the mass.

Procuring a similar clump of grass for teaching purposes, he directed, "Look. Watch my hand. It's flat enough so that I can concentrate, but curved enough so that I can still hold them upright. Now, just concentrate, and..." The plant's length grew. "...it will respond to your energy. You must command it to do your will.

"Okay, gotcha. Can I try now?" Kurama nodded. Kazuma announced, "Okay, here it goes! _Grow_!" The green withered into brown.

"Well, you did something," the teacher noted.

"I killed it! That's not what I wanna do! I thought you said it was the same as my spirit sword?"

"We'll bring it back to life then," Kurama assured him, moving to sit on his knees. "You aren't focusing the same type of energy."

"I don't have demon energy, though!" Kazuma whined.

"No, no, no," Kurama shook his head, smiling. "You need to feel it." He knelt over his student, and cradled his cupped hands. "My energy will transfer through your hands. You'll have a sense of what it feels like."

"Okay." Kazuma felt flush. Whether it was from the proximity of Kurama's body, the way those gentle hands held his own, the scent of _something_ that just drove him crazy, or the powerful, _powerful_ energy that melded with his at that moment, he couldn't say. It had him asking a lot of questions. Questions that were answered each and every time they came in the same way; _he smells so good._

He really didn't like those questions, and he really didn't like his answer.

"Your energy feels weird," Kazuma finally said. He looked at the grass. He didn't notice anything. "Nothin' happened."

"You needed to feel the difference in the energy."

"It's weird," he repeated. "Doesn't feel like your regular aura."

"It's more intense because part of it is within you." Kurama looked him in the eyes. "Now that you have an idea of what it feels like, observe how it flows when the grass grows.

_That explains it._ "Okay."

Energy strings were sewn through his hand, weaving a cold sensation between his muscles. The leathery brown strands became green with every split second of Kurama's stare. The teacher didn't have to say anything to command their growth, they just _knew_. The blades doubled in length. To Kazuma, it felt _nothing_ like his Spirit Sword, yet seemed feasible enough to accomplish.

"That was awesome!"

Kurama sat back, letting go of Kazuma's hands. "Now try to grow them longer on your own."

Kazuma did. The grass didn't grow.

"Well, at least you didn't kill them."

Kazuma was all too excited. He'd show that Urameshi yet! "Thanks, Kurama! I'm gonna grow a whole garden, just watch!"

"Working with seeds is a little trickier."

"I can do it."

"Okay, I believe you."

"Hey!" Kazuma was offended. "I'm being serious here!"

Kurama placed the clumps back into the holes they'd left behind. "I am as well. I believe that you will try as many different things as you can with this new technique."

Kazuma relaxed on his back, letting himself lay in the grass the way that boys often did. "You know," he said, "you're a good friend, Kurama. I'm kinda glad that Koenma didn't lock ya up."

Kurama glanced at Kazuma. His long, muscular body looked comfortable in that position. The fox wanted to remember that feeling, so he joined his friend, letting his back lay on the ground as well. The way the sun kissed his face incited a flood of memories. Memories of being young. Memories of being old. Memories of being carefree and independent. Memories he no longer made.

"Only kind of?" Kurama finally said.

"I am glad."

"I am as well." Kurama inhaled the scent of the cool earth beneath him. _Truly intoxicating._

"Wanna chill here for a while?" Kazuma inquired. "It might be a while before Urameshi learns whatever he's gotta learn."

"He already knows how to do that."

"Really?"

"Yes. He just hasn't made the connection yet. I believe that is what Genkai is trying to show him."

"Do you know more than Genkai or does Genkai know more than you?"

"It's not a matter of who knows more, but the way in which someone uses their knowledge to act."

"So...Genkai?"

"She is more mature."

"But, weren't you like, really old when you were in Demon World?"

"By your terms, yes," Kurama said. "However, in my terms, I was still in adulthood. I was by no means elderly, and still made the occasional mistake because I was too caught up in my own ego."

"You sound mature now," Kazuma remarked.

"Don't be mistaken," Kurama smirked. "I still have that ego."

"Gee, I haven't noticed," Kazuma replied, eyes rolling with sarcasm.

"Good. Otherwise I'd have to kill you."

"Yes, oh Great One."

_To Be Continued..._


	6. Chapter 6

I wanted to take this moment to thank **Nyte Kit**, **BlueUtopiah**, **Sora Sotara**, **Marieko**, **xCrimsonxRosesx**, **Black Lotus Flower**, **Elaina of the Dessert**, **kurama-sweethart**, **mixedfic**, **Chaseha-Wing**, and **Ainohimitsu** for all of the reviews so far. Thank you so much!

I would really love to go out there and read as many stories as I can, but I actually don't have a lot of time (At risk of radio-carbon dating myself, let's just say I have a lot of responsibilities). I try to fit writing in there somewhere. But you can still ask! I can't say that I'll get to it right away, but I will try.

Anyway, on to the story! I hope everyone likes this chapter. Please review and let me know what you think. Thanks!

**Disclaimer:** _Yu Yu Hakusho (c)__ Yoshihiro Togashi. _

* * *

**Little Things**

_By Zelia Theb_

* * *

"Minamino, are you coming to Science Club today?"

Kurama stopped. The final class of the day just let out, and he was eager to get home. He gave Keitaro an apologetic look, and replied, "No, I'm afraid not."

"Aw, come on!" Keitaro whined. "We've been waiting for you to do _The_ Experiment! You didn't show to the last meeting!"

The redhead felt regret. Keitaro Fukui was a small-framed teen with glasses and a hair-cut that just screamed "nerd." He was also fifth in their class, which didn't seem like much, but was rather good for their competitive school. He had trouble with the girls, but channeled all of his frustrations into the creative and thought-provoking discussions he had with members of the Science Club. Kurama often wondered if he would be allowed a friendship with Keitaro, but knew that in the end, it would result in danger. It was a shame, as Keitaro clearly thought of Shuichi Minamino as a friend.

"I am sorry, Fukui. I will come to the next one, I promise."

"Minamino, is your mother sick again?" Keitaro remembered how often Shuichi attended school during that time. It was hardly ever, and he recalled his classmate looking just as worn.

"No, she's completely recovered, and there was no danger of a relapse."

"What is it, then?" Keitaro pushed his glasses up. "Is everything okay?"

Kurama didn't care much for rumors, but he trusted that Keitaro wasn't going to start any. "I haven't been feeling well lately."

"I'm sorry, Minamino. You do look like it, though. But..."

"Yes?"

"We really want to do The Experiment. Kajima is getting impatient."

"Then you may do The Experiment without me. I will be there next time."

"What will I tell Kajima?" Keitaro asked him.

"That you have no idea where I am," Kurama offered.

"But I know what's going on! He'll know that I'm lying!"

"Yes, but it's my responsibility, not yours. You asked me if I was coming today, and I said that I wasn't. That is all you have to say. It would not be a lie, because that in fact, did happen."

"You promise to be at the next meeting?"

"I do."

"Okay," said Keitaro, relieved. "Bye, Minamino."

"Good bye, Fukui."

* * *

"Did you _break in_ to my home, Yusuke?"

"You say that like it's a bad thing!"

Kurama thought for certain that he would have come home to find his mother there. After all, he didn't need to use his key to get in, which meant that she was home. However, when he had arrived, he found a note from her, apologizing for not being there. His aunt Yuki, whom he'd rarely seen, had been in a car accident. She was being kept overnight, but only as a precaution. Yuki called Shiori, asking if she would mind staying the night with her, and then drive her home the next day. But with her gone, and the door unlocked, that meant _someone_ was there.

That someone ended up being Yusuke. Who was surprisingly clean; he smelled not of smoke, but of a fresh shower, which was a good thing, since he was lounging on Kurama's bed. He also looked hot. _Very hot_.

The detective had planned it that way. He was wearing a black form-fitting tee with equally form fitting slacks, instead of his uniform or even his preferred white tee and jeans combination. Kurama figured he hadn't gone to school, or at least skipped out early, since it would have taken a considerable amount of time to get ready and make it all the way to his home after that final bell.

"It _is_ a bad thing. Breaking and entering is a crime, you know."

"I'm a criminal," Yusuke shrugged.

"Masquerading as a crime fighter?" Kurama quipped.

Yusuke shot a fake bullet at his friend and winked. "Bang. You've got it. Maybe you should be the Detective?"

"I'm hardly the best candidate for the position," the former thief remarked. He set his bag down in its usual place on the floor, eager to wash up.

"You're talking to a guy who had to steal clothes a few days ago just so that he'd have something decent to wear."

Kurama sighed. "I should have known. All to gain my interest, yes?"

"See? It's that detective work again. Seriously, Kurama, you should try out for the part."

"Don't break into my mother's house again."

"Sure."

"There are some things I need to do before we can talk. Can I trust that you'll be a good boy and sit there patiently?"

"Can I read your manga, or something?" Kurama gave Yusuke the "you better have clean hands or else" look. Yusuke was starting to get the hang of this germ-thing, and said, "Don't worry, I washed my hands in your kitchen before I went around scuzzing up your room."

Relieved, Kurama tried to cover by remarking, "You say that as if I find you repulsive."

"I do repulse you. I was kinda thinking we could turn that around tonight." A devilish grin graced Yusuke's face.

Kurama gathered some clothing from his closet and paused, trying to decide what to wear after he cleaned up.

"The green one," Yusuke suggested.

"I was thinking of the red one," Kurama said, speaking about his choice of shirt.

"Green fits you."

The fox pulled out the green tee and complained, "I always thought that red was better."

"No way," Yusuke disagreed. "Green's way better. You could always go without anything, though."

"Pervert," Kurama stately flatly, reaching for a pair of khakis. "Don't try to walk in on me. I will have your head."

"I'm saving all of the fun for later," Yusuke promised.

"Not _that_ head," Kurama said, leaving his room.

"Now who's thinking dirty?"

"You have _no _idea," the redhead teased him.

"Holy crap," Yusuke muttered, suddenly fascinated by the thought of his perversion being returned. He wasn't used to that with Keiko. "Hurry up."

Kurama did not hurry. He didn't exactly take forever, either. His "make sure you clean here, here, and here" checklist was well memorized at this point. It was enough of a wait to keep Yusuke on edge without the danger of him losing interest. The fox was back in the room not a moment too soon.

Before Yusuke could get so much as a "you're hot when you're wet" comment out, Kurama, fully clothed, hair down, and teeth brushed, decreed, "We are going to talk about Keiko."

"Why do I always have to have that obligatory 'Keiko' talk everytime I wanna do something I wanna do?" Yusuke groaned.

"Clearly, you love her. You'd do anything for her."

"Yeah, but-" _Damn it._

"Where exactly do I fit in?"

"'Cause, ya know," Yusuke began, nervously scratching the back of his head, "I gotta settle down for Keiko. That means I can't do anything I wanna do."

Kurama frowned. "I do not believe you are giving her enough credit."

"You don't know her like I do."

"So explain it."

The detective let out a pouting puff of air. "'Cause anytime I find something I like, or wanna try, she always complains when she finds out. Like when I started smoking, she was super pissed. And when I had my first beer, she didn't talk to me for a week. When I got in my first fight, she cried, which I didn't get because I beat up the kid who was picking on her."

"So, you don't even know if you have feelings for me. You just want to 'try me out.' I'm not sure you've convinced me that this is a good idea."

"I _do_ like you. And yeah, I wanna try this out, 'cause it's kinda weird that I got turned on when I first saw you. I mean, who looks like that? I was asking all kindsa questions that I really didn't like."

"So you stopped me from using the mirror because you thought I was good looking?"

"No," Yusuke snarled lightly in frustration. "It's because Botan made me go to my own damn funeral and I saw my mom bawling her eyes out. I didn't want your mom to have to go through the same thing! I thought you knew that?"

"Forgive me, Yusuke, but I found your initial confession slightly difficult to believe."

The dark-haired teen laid back on Kurama's bed, hands folded behind his head, and said, "I don't want us to be fighting like me and Keiko do. I can't really explain it. I've got the hots for you. Maybe it's easier to admit because you're a demon and no one in the world has to know. I dunno. Do you wanna do this, or what?"

"Do what?" asked Kurama.

"A relationship, or whatever. What were you thinking?"

"Well, with the way you are laying there..."

Yusuke turned red. A flirtatious Kurama was _exhilirating_. He forcefully swallowed. "Well, do you wanna?"

"The relationship?"

"Yeah."

"Maybe. You realize Botan would not approve of this. And you'd need to inform Keiko."

"What the hell do I care what Botan thinks?"

"She sort of acts as my probation officer, Yusuke."

"As long as she doesn't come flying in here while we're making out, she doesn't have to know."

"But Keiko will. You can't allow her to think that there is some prospect of a love if there is not." Yusuke said nothing. "I'm not a temporary fling, Yusuke."

"Well, I was kinda thinking that since we're all teenagers that maybe we could just act like them and stop making decisions that affect the rest of our lives especially since we're kinda likely to change our minds, being teenagers."

"Run on sentence."

"Partial statement," Yusuke returned. "Now can we make out, or what?"

"We haven't even kissed yet, and all you can think of is making out?" Kurama put a finger to his chin in false thought. "You're hardly a gentleman."

"Oh, well looks like I'm just gonna lay here all day and night and tomorrow and week until someone decides what they want." The detective began to whistle, swaying his feet to the tune. After a few moments, deciding that it would be best for Kurama to stare at him for a while, he stopped the whistling, and sang, "La la la, waiting for Kurama to make up his mind. La la la."

"You're terrible."

"La la la, Kurama can't admit that I'm damn sexy and refuses to kiss me." Yusuke continued his little dance, staring upward non-chalantly.

"And annoying."

"La la la, can't shut up unless someone makes me." The last thing the detective remembered seeing before his world turned green was the ceiling.

"There, I've _made_ you," Kurama said to him, voice close, sensual, and deep. The sound sent shudders down Yusuke's back.

_This shirt smells so good. _"Unfair," Yusuke murmured, his right hand poised to remove the shirt from his vision. "You can't just throw your shirt on me without letting me get a good look-" The bed shifted. Kurama had crawled above him. "-at you."

Yusuke's hand was batted away by Kurama, who removed the unwanted, yet wonderfully scented, shirt from his friend's head. Damp and silky threads fell on Yusuke's face as Kurama leaned in, leaving only a pinch of space between them.

"Nervous, are we?" the sultry voice of Kurama asked him.

"No," answered Yusuke, tilting his head up to meet their lips.

Kurama teased him, lightly dodging the other's efforts. "You know, you're really quite annoying."

"And you're a dick-tease." Yusuke arched his back again.

"And you..." Kurama relayed, brushing their lips together as if he'd played this game a thousand times, "are quite dirty, if not crude."

"Whaddya want me to be then?" the detective asked, brown eyes slowly blinking.

"Quiet." The space between them was closed as their lips met. It was a feeling that Kurama missed dearly. To feel his tongue dance with another, to have someone beneath him quiver and clutch onto his back...amazing.

It was one hell of a kiss. Even if Yusuke was an amateur, compared to him.

"Damn, Kurama," Yusuke whispered as they pulled ever so slightly apart. "I hope you don't think I'm going home tonight."

"And whatever would we do all night?" Kurama mused in his ear, hands moving down the detective's side.

"Make out," Yusuke offered. This was the first time he could recall his advances being returned, and was he _ever_ missing out. He'd been wanting someone to touch him, to feel the supple curves of muscle on his chest, to whisper deeply in his ear and breathe hard whenever he touched back.

"You're really not a gentleman, are you?"

"You're the one with your shirt off."

"What about my mother?"

"Didn't you know? I'm nosy too."

"Obviously," Kurama responded, leaning in for another kiss. When it broke, he tugged on the edge of Yusuke's tee, and suggested, "We need to change this."

"Change? Or get rid of?"

The phone rang. "Get rid of. I can take care of that." Kurama got up. "But that could be my mother. Wait here."

"Ya really think I'm gonna leave?" Yusuke uttered as Kurama left the room. He couldn't help but notice the scar on his stomach. It was sexy, but worrisome. He was surprised that Kurama allowed anyone to see it, since he was never one to bare his chest, compared to the rest of their team.

The phone rang again. Kurama was sure that he wasn't going to make it in time, but he did. "Hello, Minamino residence," he greeted.

_"Yo! Kurama!"_

"Kazu, hello."

_"We're so close man, ya gotta come over! I bet we could finish it tonight!"_

Kurama laughed. "Are you certain? Because that game has been kicking our butts. It's taken an awfully long time for us to get through it."

_"Yeah, well, I was thinkin'. Ya know that part where we keep dyin'?"_

"Yes."

Upstairs, Yusuke was quietly listening to the conversation. He was concerned; he had read the note from Shiori and wanted to be sure that Kurama's aunt was alright. _That sure as hell doesn't sound like he's talking to his mom, _Yusuke thought. _Sounds like Kuwabara._

_"Brilliant! How did we not figure that out before?"_

_"Yes, it's worth a shot."_

_"There's one problem, though."_

Yusuke growled. _He_ was that one problem.

_"Yusuke...is here."_

_"We could both come over if you'd like."_

"What ever happened to 'I can come over tomorrow'?" Yusuke quietly asked the empty room.

_"Ah."_

_"No, I understand what you mean. It's just that...I can't exactly tell you."_

_"No! You're not out of the loop."_

_"Are you upset with me?"_

"What the hell, Kuwabara?" Yusuke asked again, secretly wishing that someone would hear his quiet pleas. "Let him get off the damn phone. Stop whining."

_"I'm sorry. You've been very patient with me. I do worry that I aggravate you."_

_"That's good to know. Maybe we will."_

_"I can call you later tonight. Will that be okay with everyone?"_

_"Oh. I see. I don't believe I've ever met them."_

_"Someday you will. I suppose that means any time is good?"_

_"Wonderful. Bye Kazu."_

"I am sorry for that, Yusuke," Kurama said as he re-entered the bedroom. "That was Kuwabara."

"Yeah, I got that with all the game talk."

"We're welcome to go over there tonight."

"_I_ wasn't the _first time_ he asked."

"You didn't have to eavesdrop, Yusuke," Kurama said, seating himself back upon the mattress.

The detective sat up and swept a hand through his hair. "You can go over and finish the game if you want. I can come back tomorrow."

"No, I don't want to right now. I want to be here."

"Bull."

"I thought you didn't want to fight."

_You call him "Kazu" like he means something more to you._ "I don't."

"Yusuke. Kuwabara and I have been spending our days off of school together for a long time now trying to finish this game. He was disappointed that this tradition is starting to get broken. These are his feelings."

"There! You did it again!"

It was becoming increasingly difficult not to fall into Yusuke's trap of anger. "What exactly did I do again?"

"You keep calling him Kuwabara when you talk to me, but to him you say Kazu."

"Because you know him as Kuwabara. He calls you by your family name. I just happen to call him by Kazu."

"That's a nickname you gave him."

"I could make up a nickname for you too, if you'd like."

"I'll be fine without one, thanks," Yusuke remarked. He slipped off the bed and made his way to the door. Kurama stopped him, grabbing him firmly by both shoulders and turning him around to face him.

"Yusuke Urameshi. I will not go through this thing trying to figure out what it is that you want. We will make our terms clear here and now. My terms are that you choose between myself and Keiko. Do not break into this house, and do not scare my mother. If your terms include calling our friend by his family name only, then you must tell me now, and make it clear."

"You make it sound absurd."

"It _is_ absurd. If you want some sort of special bond with me, then you have to try to form it."

"You don't call saving each other's lives a special bond?"

Kurama tightened his grip. "I am not kidding, Yusuke. I do not know what you want. You must tell me."

Yusuke wanted to be rash. He wanted to be nasty. He wanted to break free from Kurama's demanding grip and flee. Then his brain kicked in. Instead of doing all of those non-sensical and ill-thought actions, he put his hands on Kurama's waist, and said, "We just had the hottest kiss, ever. _Ever._ I just wanted a chance to actually hang out with you."

"You were jealous."

"Yeah, but...I mean, come on! If you were kissing you and then you suddenly got an invitation to go hang out with someone other than you, wouldn't you be a little mad too?"

"That actually made sense to me."

"That's because you secretly like me."

"Perhaps."

"Look," Yusuke compromised, drawing Kurama in closer, "just go hang out with Kuwabara for a while. I don't care. I'm not gonna try and go all Keiko on you."

"So you are apologizing?"

"You could say that I guess."

"I really don't mind staying here with you," the fox said, leaning in for another kiss.

"I don't care, Kurama, really," Yusuke said as they broke. "Besides, I should probably go home."

"Go home?"

"Yeah." Yusuke gave Kurama's sides one last tender squeeze before separating them. "Which reminds me, ya got any sorta cool herbal thing I can bring home to my mom for her cold?"

Panic. _His mother has a cold._ "Yes. What are her symptoms?" Kurama moved to his desk and opened a small drawer on the left.

"Nothing too bad. I don't even think she has a fever."

"This should work, steep it in hot water, but not boiling water. That destroys some of the essential oils that make this tea work." _I just kissed _him. Kurama handed Yusuke a small pouch of pre-blended herbs he had made. It was one of several in the drawer; he had made sure to keep such a stock lately. _His__ mother has a cold, _he worried, eyes on the supply. _I should drink one of these as a pre-caution._

"Cool, thanks." Yusuke pocketed the pouch, "I'll see ya around. Wet one for the road?"

"Of course," Kurama replied, hesitant. _Just make it quick._

"You still haven't put your shirt on," Yusuke noticed, pressing his lips onto the other. He traced a finger along the scar on Kurama's stomach, deepening the kiss. It was not the quick good-bye that the fox was hoping for.

_Break it._ "Yusuke," he began, nose to nose with his new love, "those herbs don't do well in pockets." _Liar._

"Right. I'll see ya."

Kurama waited patiently for Yusuke to leave before breaking out into a sweat. _I must bathe. I have to change my sheets. I have to clean this room. I need to wipe down the doorknobs. Then the phone._

"I need to call Kazu," Kurama whispered.

_To Be Continued..._


	7. Chapter 7

**Big giant THANK YOU to Marieko, Sora Sotara, SilenceNights, TeaTimewithMonsters, BlueUtopiah, AYA, and Brieze for the reviews of last chapter!**

I'd also like to thank readers all over the world. This story has received hits from the **USA, UK, Egypt, Australia, Canada, China, Malaysia, Estonia, Germany, Brazil, Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam, Sweden, Taiwan, Indonesia, Brunei, Romania, Japan, and Greece.** I am happy to see that Yu Yu has no bounds!

Please continue to review. Let me know if you find any mistakes, or what your favorite part of the story has been so far. Are there any questions you have that are unanswered? I'll be happy to see what you all think and feel so far. Thanks again for all of the support! Here's the next chapter, enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** _Yu Yu Hakusho __ Yoshihiro Togashi. Star Fox is not mine either. I make no profit off of this work, and have no intentions of doing so._

* * *

**Little Things**

_By Zelia Theb_

* * *

_Two days incubation time. Or is it three? Two hours and twenty-five minutes since contact._

_It's not first-hand contact. It was his mother. He wasn't showing any signs._

_He could be a carrier. Maybe he's immune. He may have been incubating as well. It's contagious during all stages._

_Is it? Maybe I should look that up._

_Common colds aren't caused by any one specific germ. It's a culmination of germs. It might not even be a cold. It could be the flu._

_It can't be the flu. She'd be miserable. For all Yusuke knows, this is just another hang-over._

"Earth to Kurama?" Kazuma waved a hand in front of his friend's face.

"Sorry." Kurama took a sip from his homemade tea.

It was midnight. The two boys were sitting blankly in front of the Kuwabara's television. They beat the level using Kazuma's tactic, but were now stuck on the level of the game right after that one. It was the final level before the boss. They were stumped. And they had just lost their last life. It was Game Over.

"I don't think you're gonna get whatever Miss Atsuko has."

"I can't be sure."

"You're drinking that stuff like a fish," Kazuma noted. It was true; Kurama was on his third cup. "That stuff isn't toxic or whatever after a while, is it?"

"No." Another sip.

"The game isn't working this time. What's gonna make you feel better?"

"I don't know."

"Karaoke?" Kazuma suggested. Kurama shook his head. "Movie?" Another negative response. "Eikichi?" A bit of a stifled giggle. "See! I'll go get Eikichi."

"He won't help," the boy uttered.

Kazuma was already in the kitchen, searching. "Sure he will! Here, Eikichi! Meow! Come on boy, where are you?"

"Meow?"

"There you are!" Kazuma scooped the cat up into his arms and then placed him in Kurama's lap.

"Meow."

"I suppose you're right," Kurama accepted, scratching the feline's ears.

"See? All ya needed was a little love."

"That's what got me into this mess..."

"You're a real downer tonight," Kazuma complained. "What the hell happened?"

"Yusuke..."

"That little prick already ruined your night as is! Damn, doesn't that jerk know better?"

"He doesn't seem to realize-Kazu? How much do you want to actually know?"

"Tell me everything. That's fine."

Eikichi snuggled into Kurama's embrace. "It's not fine. The fact that I am attracted to males makes you uncomfortable."

"Damn it. That's enough!" Kazuma hit the floor with his fists. "I'm perfectly fine with you, okay? It's Urameshi I don't like."

"I thought he was your best friend."

"Meow." Eikichi seemed to agree.

"He's not good enough for ya!" The declaration would have been too loud for the night, but as luck would have it, they were alone. Shizuru was out with friends and wouldn't be back until the next day. His parents, also non-existent, never made it into the conversation, but Kazuma had already told Kurama that they were a discussion best kept for another time.

"I think I've had my fill of jealousy for one night," Kurama muttered, letting Eikichi out of his hold.

"Jealousy? Whaddya mean by that?"

"What I mean," the older said, standing with his tea cup, "is that I am not in the mood to be fighting with my friends all night." Kurama didn't like how often he was losing his cool. He went into the Kuwabara's kitchen and rinsed out his cup like a polite guest.

"Are you leaving?" Kazuma was standing now as well.

"Yes, is that an issue? I don't have to be trapped here all night, do I?"

_Holy crap, he's pissed._ "Okay, wait wait wait." Kazuma was waving his hands in front of him as he spoke. "This is getting outta hand. I'm not mad at you. I'm mad at Urameshi. He keeps screwin' up and makin' you upset. I'm not jealous or whatever, I just want my friend to be happy."

Kurama stood still in the door frame between the kitchen and living room. "I am not happy."

"I can smash Urameshi's face in if ya want."

"I don't want that." Kurama let his head rest in defeat on the door frame. _If you keep worrying, your immune system won't be strong. Stress reduces strength._

"I promise, you can tell me anything."

"Yusuke was waiting for me in my room when I came home from school," Kurama began, almost inaudible to Kazuma. The grain in the wood of frame was keeping his mind at ease; his brain built designs out of the patterns as he thought about what he had to say.

"Meow?" Eikichi brushed his face against Kurama's ankle.

"He broke in? That's kinda creepy."

"It's just his way," the teen defended, voice still low. "He looked so-hmm. He reminded me of someone I once knew, as my former self. Then he started telling me how to dress, what would look good, and flirting. Then, when I got out of the shower-"

"You two already took a _shower_ together?"

Emerald eyes stayed still on the grain. "No. He waited for me while I appeased my neurosis."

"Oh, yeah."

"Then I asked him about Keiko."

"Oh." _Poor Keiko!_ "He whined, didn't he."

"He did. I told him that he had to choose, that I wasn't some fling, that-we started fighting."

"Were ya fighting when I called? Is that why you couldn't say anything?"

"No. We finally...I suppose, made it official." Kurama's lips tingled at the memory. "It was amazing. And then you called."

"So you-"

"Kissed."

"I interrupted you two kissing?" The visual made Kazuma's stomach flip, until the gymnastics were stopped by the idea of disappointing Yusuke.

"Actually, I think it might have turned into more. But he overheard our conversation."

"More? Like-"

"Yes," Kurama cut him off. "Don't accuse him, it was my doing."

"I get it. He was mad I called." Kazuma awarded himself a silent victory. "That's why you had your fill of jealousy."

"He's upset that I call you 'Kazu.' We started fighting again."

"All in that short period of time?"

"Yes."

"Not a good start."

"No." Kurama closed his eyes. _That's what you get for trying your luck. You should have asked him if his mother had a cold first, and made sure he was loyal to you._ "It smoothed out in the end. But-"

"Kurama, you don't deserve to be treated that way."

"I know."

"And I don't get why you're takin' that crap from him. You could whoop his ass from here to high hell. The entire Demon World is pretty much afraid of you."

"Was. I am not the same as back then. Most have no doubt heard of my demise at the hands of that bounty hunter."

"Sorry. I didn't mean to get mad at Urameshi earlier."

"It's fine. You're right."

Kuwabara wanted to ask Kurama why Urameshi, and not someone a little more honorable and worth it. He wanted to ask Kurama why it was a big deal that he had a nickname, one that he liked, at that. He wanted to know why Kurama came over to his house, and actually seemed to consider _that_ over spending time with the guy he liked. The guy he was kissing.

Kurama looked so _lonely_ in the door frame. Kuwabara could see the mental struggle plastered across the fox's face. It wasn't all of the fighting either, it was the strain of those poisonous thoughts. He couldn't get rid of them, and Kuwabara was helpless to try and find an answer for his friend. He knew that there would come a time when even his friendship and the comfort of his home would no longer be a safe haven for Kurama's withering mind. He had to come up with _something._

That something had to be off-topic. It was growing increasingly difficult, as Kuwabara's own mind had started obsessing over what happened a week ago. Did Kurama ever think of _him?_ Could he have been overlooked? Did Kurama deem him not attractive enough? Or did he have feelings?

"I started growing a tomato plant," Kazuma said, breaking the silence that had engulfed the entire house, while on the other hand, quieting the questions in his mind.

"You don't have to do this."

"No, seriously. It's got a little vine and everything started. I poked a stick into the pot with it so that it had somewhere to grow."

"That's impressive."

"Are ya gonna look up at me?"

"I rather like it right here."

"Yeah well I like you right here."

"What?" Kurama finally turned his head and stared straight into Kuwabara.

Those vibrant, pleading, and sad eyes gave him a shock._ What in the hell did I just say?! _"I mean, playing the game! Right here. The controller doesn't reach that far."

"...Oh."

The tension in the air was thick. Thick and awkward.

"We can move the table, if we wanna lean against the couch." Kazuma looked to his side, and stammered, "Uh, actually, I'll just move it...here. There. We can play now." Nervously, he set the game up again, and sat on the floor, back against the sofa. "Gonna come play or what?"

"I suppose," Kurama responded, removing himself from his post as angsty kitchen guard. Eikichi followed. He _adored_ Kurama.

They moved through the first few levels with ease. They were fast too, the more they played. They knew just when to boost, when to bomb, when to do a barrel roll; it was hard-wired into their brains.

But they kept dying at the final level. Twelve-thirty turned to one, one turned to one-thirty, and one-thirty turned to two. It was Kazuma's turn to try that hellish level again. They had only lost one life in this run so far.

"Kazu," began a languid Kurama, handing off the controller, "would you mind if I rested my head on your shoulder? The couch isn't the right level for my neck."

"Sure," the taller agreed. "Tired?"

"Yes."

"Whatever." Kazuma's face was tickled as Kurama's hair brushed against him. Soon, that scent pervaded his nose again. _Smells nice, _he thought.

"Maybe we should skip that ring. Then we wouldn't be on that side of the board."

"Nice thinkin'," the player replied quietly. _Just ask._ "Hey, what shampoo do you use?"

"Whatever my mother buys. I blend an herb with it to help mask my demon energy from other demons."

"Smells good."

Kurama let out a light chuckle. "Thanks."

A flash illuminated the room. Kazuma was hoping that his well timed bomb would be the key to beating the board.

"Looks like we're dead," Kurama pointed out.

"Sorry. Think I'm gettin' tired." He handed the controller over. Kurama held it, but didn't exactly take it. "You awake?"

"Hm?" A controller seemed to materialize in his hand. "Not really."

"Well I got the futon all cleaned, we can go upstairs."

"I'm not entirely...."

"You're mumblin'."

"I'm not entirely sure I want to move."

"Well I gotta move, 'cause otherwise the game is gonna freeze or somethin'."

"Mmhmm."

Kazuma rolled his eyes, gingerly moving Kurama against the couch so that he could get up and turn off the system. He changed the channel to a station playing reruns, lowered the volume, and crawled back to his spot below the couch.

"This isn't very comfortable," the sleepy fox whined.

"How d'ya expect me to sleep?" Kazuma prodded.

"Do my demon bidding."

"Fine. If ya really insist on being lazy and sleepin' on the floor, then I'm gonna take the back cushions off and put 'em behind us." Kurama felt like dead weight to him when he attempted to do just that, but he managed to squeeze one of the thick cushions behind him. Kazuma sat back in place, allowing Kurama to return his fantastically scented head back on his shoulder.

"Better," murmured Kurama, dozing off.

"So I get to watch T.V. all night until you're tired enough to push off of me."

"No pushy."

"You're being a baby on purpose!"

"No baby."

"Get off'a me," Kazuma said with a shove. Kurama toppled over in laughter. "You've got a weird sense of humor, ya know that?"

"Maybe I was trying to hit on you."

"Maybe you we-what?" Kazuma eyed him cautiously. His friend was flat on the floor, tendrils of hair spilled out every which way.

"Maybe I was trying to hit on you," Kurama repeated.

"Well, it wasn't working. You can forget it." Kazuma crossed his arms and stuck his nose up in defiance.

"Suit yourself," said Kurama, standing. "Looks like I'll have your bed all to myself then."

"Yeah, seems so." Kurama bolted upstairs. "Hey! I sleep on my bed!" The teen turned off the television and raced upstairs to find Kurama curled up and pretending to be asleep.

"Snore."

"Hey! I've slept with you enough times before to know that you don't snore! People also don't say 'snore' when they snore."

Kurama sat up like a robot. "We've slept together? This is news to me."

Kazuma's jaw was agape, his face tomato-red, and eyes wide. "I'm tired! My words are messin' up!" He shook the expression from his face. "What's wrong with you? One moment you're tired and hardly able to talk, and the next you're screwing with me and stealin' my bed!"

"I'm overtired."

"So go to sleep then."

"Certainly." Kurama fell back into the mattress. _What the hell am I doing, flirting? Or reverting to the age of two?_

"You're gonna sleep in that?"

"Can't hear you, sleeping." Kurama even closed his eyes for dramatic effect. Unfortunately, this allowed Kazuma to take him by surprise and pick him up. The fox went from a sleeping child to a bride being carried over the thresh hold. He was promptly dropped on the futon, causing him to wince in pain.

Kazuma shut off the lights. "I'm gonna sleep in my bed now. Try and be normal when you wake up."

"You could have broken my tail bone."

"Can't hear you, sleeping," the taller replied as he stepped over Kurama.

"You're not even in bed yet."

"I am now!" he declared with a dive, nose landing right in his pillow. The sweet fragrance of Kurama's hair had infected the fabric, and thus, his mind. _How am I supposed to be able to sleep tonight?_ "You got your hair all over my pillow."

"I apologize," Kurama said, thinking that he was speaking of actual strands. "We could always switch, you know."

"Did ya lay down yet?"

"Not really."

"Switch."

"No."

Kazuma, already half onto the futon, protested, "Why not? Didn't ya just say if I wanted we could switch?"

"It's not something I meant, it's just something you say when you think the other person is too stubborn and that their complaint is ridiculous."

"It's not ridiculous!"

"It is. I could just remove the hairs for you. Or you could get a new pillow."

"It's not your _hair_ hair. It's the smell of your hair." _Shit on a Spirit Stick!_ "I think I might be allergic to it or somethin'."

"We shared a bed last week," Kurama fondly remembered. "You were not allergic to it then."

"Uh..."

"Admit it. You think my hair smells nice."

"I already said that though." _That's right, idiot. Dig the hole a little deeper._

"Just admitting that doesn't automatically make you gay."

Kazuma stuttered, "Wh-who said anything about that?"

"Never mind," Kurama said. "Let's just go to sleep."

"I'm startin' to think that you and Urameshi are perfect for each other," Kazuma remarked, climbing back into his own bed. "You're both complete whack-jobs."

"What's the saying? 'Takes one to know one'?"

"I oughta kick your ass for that one."

"I'd like to see you try," Kurama challenged him. "I am the Great and all powerful Youko Kurama."

"You're adding an 'all powerful' to that now, huh?"

"Not adding," Kurama corrected. "It was merely omitted before."

"Yeah right."

_To Be Continued..._


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's Note:**

Thanks for all of the reviews! So many were in-depth and really great to read. Thanks!

I am going to apologize in advance now. I have been writing this story at least two chapters in advance – basically, when I uploaded Chapter 4, I actually was writing Chapter 6, and so on. While writing Chapter 9, I ran into a bit of a snag. So last week, I didn't work on it much. Granted, most of it IS written, and it's not a writer's block thing. I also didn't lose interest in the work. It's just a snag.

That being said, the update may be a little slow the next week. This is because I have been summoned for Jury Duty (I may or may not be chosen), there's Halloween plans, plus Fable II just came out. I know – some of you may be saying, "Weren't you already summoned a few years ago?" I was. However, I've since moved into a different county, and was unable to provide proof that I served. Take note, kids! Always keep proof of you serving, and if your employer needs that proof to account for time off, give them a copy, not the original!

Anyway, on to the story!

**Disclaimer:** _Yu Yu Hakusho __ Yoshihiro Togashi. _

* * *

**Little Things**

_By Zelia Theb_

* * *

"Fukui! What _happened_?"

Keitaro Fukui stood before his classmate, glasses missing and purple bruises below his left eye and on his right cheek. The top button of his uniform was undone, mostly because it was missing. The boy had clearly been in a fight.

"Shinichi Fudo," Keitaro replied meekly.

"But how?" Kurama asked. "The final bell just rang."

"I didn't make it to my last class...Fudo caught me."

"Why?"

"Fudo is mad that I didn't allow him to cheat off of me. I didn't want to get caught or expelled!"

"So, it is as I suspected. Fudo isn't really fit for our school." Kurama began walking, leading Keitaro as they talked, to the room where Science Club was held. "Were there others?"

"Yes," Keitaro said. "Adayama, Mutsui, and Kageshima." Keitaro realized where they were headed, and said, "Oh, you are coming today?"

"No," Kurama told him. "We are explaining this to Kajima, and I am taking you to the nurse."

"But Minamino-"

"Keitaro," Kurama interrupted, "you must tell me something. Does Kendo Club meet today?"

"Y-yes...but-"

"Shinichi Fudo will be there, correct?"

"I don't want you to say anything to him, though."

"I will not have to," Kurama said, pausing at the classroom where Science Club was held. "Wait here, I will be right out." In a few moments, Kurama returned to the hallway with Hiro Kajima, a tall, good looking, and athletic scholar.

"Fukui, you look terrible!" Kajima said.

"Would you be able to inform the others that we will not be attending tonight?" Kurama requested. "I know my absences have been terrible as of late, but Fukui needs to be taken to the nurse and I would like to accompany him."

"You came last week, and we got to do The Experiment. I think everyone will understand if you aren't there again." Kajima eyed Keitaro up and down. "Fudo, wasn't it?"

"Yes," the redhead responded.

"Hmm," Kajima rubbed his chin in thought. "Well, we do miss you, Minamino. It's not the same without you."

"I am sorry."

"But Fudo's run through this club several times over. You and I are the only remaining targets he hasn't hit yet. Do you intend on doing anything about this?"

"Perhaps."

"No!" Keitaro protested. "We could get expelled for causing trouble!"

"Fukui, don't worry so much," Kajima told him. "Minamino and I could handle ourselves if faced by Fudo."

"He's too big," Keitaro said. "He has friends too."

"Ah," Kajima said, dropping his voice into a hush as a group of students passed. "I can come with you two, if you'd like."

"It's best to keep others out of this, I'm afraid," Kurama said.

"You might need my back-up, Minamino, if you intend on fighting him."

"I have other methods," Kurama alluded, though the other two weren't sure of what he meant. "Alternate ways that could keep us out of trouble."

"Ah." Kajima turned to Keitaro. "I will call you tomorrow to check on you."

"Thank you, Kajima," Keitaro bowed. "Minamino, are we heading to the nurse?"

"Yes."

"Okay, let's go. Good-bye, Kajima."

"Talk to you later," Kajima said. Before Kurama could join Keitaro, who was already a few steps ahead of him, Kajima stopped him, and whispered, "Can I trust you with him?"

"Of course, Kajima."

"You need to keep this a secret, Minamino," Kajima began. "I like him. I don't want to see him hurt."

"You certainly hide it well."

"Well..."

"Don't worry."

"Thank you."

Kurama nodded and caught up to Fukui, and the two of them turned the next corner and into the nurse's office. The nurse was appalled, and quick to help, pulling out cotton balls, bandages, and more from the stock of supplies to help Keitaro get cleaned up. Kurama politely excused himself to the bathroom, promising he would return in a few minutes, although he never went to the facilities. Instead, he went to an open and empty classroom, where he popped open his communicator in hopes of reaching Yusuke.

_"Botan, I swear, if this is another stupid-ass mission, I'm gonna kick Koenma's-Oh. Hey Kurama."_

"Yusuke, I need to ask a favor of you."

_"The good kind?"_

"Yes, but not what you're thinking," Kurama answered, appealing to Yusuke's rough nature.

_"Damn. What's up?"_

"I need your assistance."

_"Yeah, I gathered that."_

"I need you to meet me at my school."

_"Kurama, does this involve ass-kicking?"_

"You could put it that way."

_"I'm there."_

"Thank you."

_"It's because you don't want to get expelled."_

"Precisely," the fox nodded.

_"Well I'm close by anyway since I skipped out to stalk you."_

"You're quite endearing."

_"You forgot charming."_

"Just meet me outside. Once the clubs finish, I will need you."

_"Just what I like to hear."_

"Not in that way."

_"Yet."_

"Good-bye, Yusuke." Kurama closed the communicator and returned it to his pocket. Certainly Yusuke's presence would be an advantage. He just hoped that it didn't get around that he knew such a person.

* * *

"Fudo."

"Minamino," the burly and brooding brat replied, walking towards the teen with his thuggish group of friends. "Have ya got test answers for me?"

"Yes, of course," Kurama lied, patting his school bag. "I'd like to do the exchange where we can't be seen. I'm sure you know a thing or two about keeping up appearances."

"Hah! Adayama, see? Told you their little group would come to their senses!"

"Right," the grunt grunted.

"How about the alley outside of the gate?"

"My favorite place," Fudo remarked.

_It would be_, Kurama thought as he guided them toward the alley. When they arrived, they saw Keitaro Fukui, standing alone near a wall.

"Fukui, back for more?" Fudo taunted. "Least your little friend here knows what's good for 'im. Watch and learn, loser."

"Oh, Fudo," Kurama said. "So it _was_ you who beat up Fukui."

"Yeah," Fudo snorted, "what of it?"

"I'm sorry, our deal was just broken. Step aside, we must leave now."

"Tsk tsk tsk," Fudo shook his head. "We ain't leavin' without those answers. Or we could pulverize ya."

"Violence is hardly the answer," Kurama grinned.

"I got my boys here, it's four against two. Hell, four against one and a half. Fukui's no match at all."

Keitaro cowered in the corner as the thugs began cracking their knuckles. Kurama stayed still, and suggested, "We could try a more diplomatic approach, don't you agree? One in which the two of us leave unharmed, you fail your own tests, and leave your fellow classmates alone."

"Yeah, that's not really workin' for me, ya know?" Kudo sarcastically said. "I think we're gonna beat the shit outta you two for lyin' to us."

"You really should have opted for diplomacy."

"Hey, Fudo," Mutsui said, "I don't like the way that guy is lookin' at us."

"Yeah, don't even look like he's scared!" Kageshima added.

"Most likely because I am not," Kurama informed them, face still.

"Yeah, why not?" Fudo asked.

"Prolly," explained Yusuke, jumping down between them from his hiding place, "'cause I'm gonna kick your ass."

"Uh, F-Fudo," Adayama stuttered. "Th-that's...Zombie Urameshi."

"Damn straight it is," Yusuke confirmed, confidence and ego beaming brighter than the sun. "Now, which one of you assholes wants to go first? I can take you all on if you can't decide."

"I ain't fightin' no zombie!" Fudo said. "This here's between us and them, not you."

"Lame excuse for being scared man." Yusuke shook his head in disappointment. "And I was really looking forward to a fight. I guess I can let that bogus excuse pass if you promise not to beat anyone up anymore...but..."

"Whatever, zombie, that's enough. We'll let 'em go."

"Yeah," Yusuke sighed. "You see, I just don't _believe_ you. So I think I'll kick your ass anyway."

"Come on, Keitaro," Kurama murmured under the fresh commotion, placing a hand on his classmate's shoulder.

"Minamino, will your friend be okay?"

"He will be fine. Please, speak of this to no one, not even Kajima. Just go home now."

"O-okay."

* * *

"You're a real ruffian," Kurama said. He and Yusuke were walking to Mister Burger, after Yusuke had complained of hunger caused by his easily-won fight. Plus, he had stolen the contents of Fudo's wallet, so this was the only logical course of action.

"'Cause I took his money? Big deal, he's probably just some rich kid who's mommy and daddy are so deluded by the prospect of his success that they just hand out money left and right."

"You're correct."

"I can call this a date if it will make you feel better."

"Hah!" Kurama let out. "You call Mister Burger a date?"

"That's what all the kids are doing! Plus, we can go see that new martial arts movie after."

_Just what I'd like to do. Stand in an alley, eat fast food at the place where the girl with the nails works, and then sit in a theater chair that thousands of patrons have sat in before._ "That's not necessary."

"What's your ideal date, then?" Yusuke asked. "Don't tell me it's going to see some foreign flick, or shopping, or whatever."

"You? Shop?"

"Not willingly."

"Speaking of which," Kurama said, eyes glancing down the road at the Mister Burger sign, "have you spoken to Keiko yet?"

"Uh, yeah..." Yusuke trailed off uncomfortably, "about that..."

"This 'date' is over," Kurama stated, heels turning. "Good-bye, Yusuke."

"Wait, Kurama!"

Kurama stopped. He was in no hurry, he just wanted to make a point. "Yes?"

"I haven't had the time to."

"You've had two weeks."

Yusuke didn't have a response. He _was_ putting it off. Truth be told, he loved Keiko very much, but he wasn't quite ready to be committed to her yet, even though he wanted it to be that way eventually. Telling her meant cutting that tie completely. She wouldn't understand.

He was infatuated with Kurama as well. Although he couldn't see as far in the future as he could with Keiko, he did see a lot of "now" with him.

He had to tell him.

"It's beyond the mirror."

The redhead faced Yusuke, and for clarification, asked, "What do you mean?"

"I feel alive, Kurama," Yusuke began. "Like really alive. We've both seen each other's true sides. I-"

"That's okay," Kurama stopped him. "You don't have to continue. We can go to Mister Burger."

The rest of the walk, which wasn't very far, was in silence. The two stepped into the place, which was only somewhat busy from the after-school crowd, and declared their spot in the queue. When it was their turn to order, Yusuke went first.

"Oh, uh, Urameshi, welcome to Mister Burger, heh."

"Ah, Junichiro, _after school job_, huh?" Yusuke intimidated, leaning a little further over the counter than he was supposed to.

"Uh, yes, yes, you know, to help out my family." Junichiro tugged at his collar; it was getting warm in there.

"So, I can trust a _good guy like you_ to make me and my friend's food perfect, right?"

"Um, yes, yes, of course. Absolutely, anything for you, Urameshi."

Yusuke pulled out the stolen money and counted. "You know what will happen if I catch anyone spitting or not wearing their gloves, right?"

"Um, yes, yes, I do, that I do."

The detective leaned on the counter again and squinted dramatically into the back galley kitchen. "Is that Katsuya back there too? So you both have after-school jobs. Huh, no wonder you two haven't been around to bully everyone at school..."

After a large, nervous gulp, Junichiro nodded, and asked, "May I take your order please?"

"Number three, and whatever my friend wants."

"Yes, yes, of course. For you, miss?"

"That's one strike, Junichiro. My friend is a guy. See the uniform?"

"Oh, oh, um, yes, yes, I am so sorry. His appearance, is, um, amphibious-"

"Ambiguous," Kurama corrected. He was a fox, damn it!

"Yes, yes, sorry, what will you have?"

"I will also have a number three."

"Yes, yes, uh-um, sorry. What would you two like to drink?"

"Strawberry," answered Yusuke first, and then Kurama second.

"Yes, yes, I'll have that right up for you. I apologize again, sir."

"I'll be _watching_, Junichiro," Yusuke reminded him, before moving down to the waiting line.

"You're deplorable," Kurama noted, "but sweet. Thank you."

"No big deal. The guy's a total asshole to a few kids at school, and I've whooped him a few times. He knows better now." Yusuke waved to the fellow in the back. "Hey, Katsuya!" The teen cowered and got the message. "Would ya look at that? Junichiro and Katsuya are making our food all by themselves. Good for them."

"Deplorable."

"But sweet."

"H-here you are, Urameshi sir," Junichiro said, placing two trays of food on the counter. "Th-thank you. Please come again."

"I rock," Yusuke whispered to himself. He and Kurama took their trays and found an empty booth, where they sat on opposite sides with Yusuke's back to the entrance. Kurama went through the same motions as last time after setting his bag in the booth. He wiped off the table, excused himself to the restroom, washed his hands, and returned. Yusuke said nothing, and just allowed Kurama to do as he needed to. He didn't even try to reach for one of the redhead's fries, though mostly because his own were pretty damn tasty.

"I cleaned my room," Yusuke brought up casually.

"What are you suggesting?"

"My mom is out gambling tonight."

"Lovely."

"Not that she'd care anyway."

"They gave us extra fries," Kurama observed. "They're rather good. I hope you thank them."

"Since we had to do that mini-errand for baby-face last week, we could pick up where we left off."

"You're not listening at all."

"The fries are good." Yusuke picked up one and put it in his mouth. "Besides," he said as he swallowed, "you were trying to change the subject."

"It's going to change anyway," Kurama pointed out.

"Why?"

"Because Keiko and Kuwabara just walked in."

"What?" Yusuke briskly turned around in his seat and swore quietly.

"And Botan."

"Yusuke!" The blue-haired version of death dressed in a sailor suit waved at him. The brunette Keiko turned her head next, followed by Kuwabara.

"Hey, Botan!" Yusuke returned the gesture, and then muttered to Kurama, "Damn. It."

"Kuwabara, would you mind ordering for us?" Botan requested, handing him money.

"Of course! Anything for you ladies," Kuwabara smiled. _Is this counterfeit money from Spirit World?_ He accepted the money and listened to their orders before getting in line.

The girls joined them at their booth, Keiko sitting next to Yusuke and then Botan next to her. Yusuke instantly regretted choosing a larger booth. He had plans for himself and Kurama. Those were shattered the instant he saw Keiko. Now he just felt plain guilty.

"See?" Botan said excitedly. "I knew we would _eventually_ find him, Keiko!"

"I guess I shouldn't be surprised that he was skipping class again," Keiko remarked.

"Hey, gimme a break. I'm not as book smart as the rest of the world."

"And you never _will_ be if you keep cutting class, Yusuke!" Botan scolded.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Yusuke took a bite from his burger.

Kurama cut the tension. "Botan, what brings you here? Surely our detective doesn't have another case."

"Oh no," Botan said with a flit of her hand. "I've actually accrued quite a bit of vacation time!"

"And you chose to spend it here?" Yusuke asked. "Gimme a break."

"Yusuke!" Keiko hissed. "Wouldn't you want a day off to spend with your friends once in a while if you did what Botan did?"

"Um, newsflash, Keiko. We work for the same boss."

"You don't do the same things. Besides, you didn't answer my question."

Yusuke looked to Kurama to rescue him, but the redhead wanted nothing to do with it. "I do want a day off," Yusuke said, defeated.

"Um, so!" Botan began. "What should we do after we eat?"

"Who said we were all hanging out tonight?" Yusuke muttered.

"Aren't we?"

The same look. Kurama inwardly sighed. "Yes, that would be wonderful," he said. He caught Yusuke's eyes rolling.

"Uh, a little help?" Kuwabara said, balancing three trays in his arms.

"Oh, of course!" Botan complied, reaching up to take the tray with the most tilt. She passed it on to Keiko, as it was her meal, and then took her own.

"What's up?" Kuwabara asked the table, sliding into the booth next to Kurama.

"We're trying to plan what to do tonight," Keiko said.

"The arcade," Yusuke suggested.

"Karaoke?" offered Botan.

"A movie?" asked Keiko.

All of those suggestions meant contact with things that Kurama didn't care to lay his hands on.

"Nah," Kuwabara said for the fox. "Ain't nothin' good in the theaters that we'd all wanna see. Karaoke might not be a good idea, 'cause it's the weekend and there might be a few lechers gettin' drunk and all. Plus, the girls might not really like the arcade, and that costs money."

"Then what do _you_ suggest we do, Kuwabara?" Yusuke asked, mood soured and jealousy rising.

"Well, we can go to my house, or whatever. I've got a few new movies there, and we just got some new cards, plus we can just hang out and not worry about anyone else, 'cept Shizuru, but she's still on her cooking streak so we can prolly get some food too."

"Won't your parents mind?" Keiko asked.

_Crap._ "Nah, it's just me and my sis."

Yusuke saw the ease that washed over his love's face. Even if Kuwabara was the one to come to the rescue, he had to put Kurama's comfort over his own. As long as Keiko didn't notice.

"That sounds like fun!" Keiko agreed.

_Dodged that bullet._ "Yeah, we can hang out over there," Yusuke chimed in. "Got any homework or anything, Kurama?"

"I do, but it can wait." Kurama looked to Kuwabara, and asked, "Would I be able to call my mother when we get to your home?"

"Sure, no problem. Doesn't she know you're out?"

"Yes, I called her from school, but I would like to call her again to let her know where I will be."

"Isn't he just an adorable son, Keiko?" Botan remarked.

"Yes, _very_," the brunette agreed, her words acting like a knife in Yusuke's side.

"Cool!" Kuwabara exclaimed, finally taking the chance to start eating. _Kurama hasn't even been home yet. I wonder if he's freaking out about it._

"So, what were you two doing before we got here?" Botan wondered.

"We were on a date," Yusuke said, popping the last bite of his meal into his mouth.

"Don't be mean to your friend, Yusuke," Keiko told him. He shrugged and sat back in the booth.

_Crap crap crap. They were on a date. I don't think Urameshi knows that I know, either._ "Did ya know that punk Junichiro works here, Urameshi?"

"Sure do. Bet you got great service too."

"Yeah, I guess I did. He was actin' a little weird."

"You're welcome."

"He didn't do anything do our food, did he Yusuke?" Keiko asked, dropping a fry on the tray. Botan also paused her eating while they waited for an answer.

"You're food's fine. Especially since he probably saw Botan waving at me."

"I hope you stop fighting some day, Yusuke."

Yusuke groaned. "Sometimes it serves a purpose, ya know. Just ask Botan."

The ferrywoman giggled nervously. "Yes, well, you know. Under orders! Now, why don't we finish our food and go to Kuwabara's?"

_To Be Continued..._


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's Note:** Another bout of real life occurred. Please enjoy this update! Copy and paste any errors you catch into a review or message, no matter how small, and please review anyway just to let me know how you liked the chapter. Thanks!

Oh, and I gave the Kuwabaras a small back porch.

**Disclaimer:** _Yu Yu Hakusho __ Yoshihiro Togashi. Star Fox is also not mine._

* * *

**Little Things**

_By Zelia Theb_

* * *

"You guys are about to witness the _greatest thing ever._"

The crew was on edge. After a delightful round of appetizers courtesy of their resident Iron Chef, the group talked about nothing and everything for a while, until somehow, the topic of _Star Fox_ was brought up.

Now, there they were, the girls lined up on the sofa and the boys seated on the floor. Yusuke was just a little too close to Kurama, but to Keiko, it just seemed like his normal over-enthusiasm when it came to winning and video games. Kurama and Kuwabara were about to do what they haven't been able to do in a while. Beat the game. On the hardest level.

Maybe it was the cheering of their friends. Maybe it was because they were so damned fed-up with losing. Kurama secretly hoped that another game would be on the horizon. Kuwabara hoped for the same thing. The worst thing about that lingering "maybe" was the fear of their routine being broken. That perhaps they were really holding back because they enjoyed each other's company. On the other hand, maybe they wanted to finish it because the other seemed like they were pushing away, and they didn't want to be a burden.

"Watch out!" Botan warned.

"Got it!" Kuwabara said, letting his Arwing roll over.

"The double-blasters! Watch the wing!" Kurama directed.

"Nice catch!"

"There he is! Be careful, Kazu," Kurama said.

The final battle was upon them. Kuwabara was holding the reins, and Kurama was his co-pilot. Everyone else was just a spectator during the fight.

What a fight it was. Kuwabara was certain that his Arwing would explode any second, but in the end, he managed that final blow.

"We did it!" Kuwabara shouted.

"Wait! Do you have to-"

"Crap, I gotta escape? Wait-"

"The game's over?" Keiko asked from the sofa.

"The game's over," Kurama said.

Kuwabara set the controller down as the end sequence played. "The game's over..." he murmured. "The game's over! Oh my gosh, we did it!" Kuwabara tackled Kurama and gave him the largest bear hug of congratulations that he could offer. "Wediditwediditwedidit!"

The other four clapped and watched the two redheads celebrate their pixelated victory. Shizuru, after having a long period without a cigarette, decided to step outside. The other girls chatted excitedly between each other about how wonderful the two worked together, with Botan slipping in how games could encourage team work and thus create a more cohesive team. Upon hearing that, Yusuke remarked that they wouldn't be able to get Hiei to touch a video game, but that it would be amusing to try. The two victors, on the other hand, carried their celebration into the kitchen, as they were quite thirsty.

"That was awesome!" Kazuma said, handing Kurama a can of soda and a clean towel.

"It was thrilling, wasn't it?" Kurama returned with, wiping down the top of the can with the cloth.

"Yeah, super awesome!" Kazuma grabbed his own can and lifted the metal tab. "That took a long time." The taller took a nervous sip. _Why did I have to open _that_ door?_

"It did, but it was worth it."

Kazuma was off the hook, but for some hidden reason, he not only opened the door to the question on their minds, he stepped through it. "I guess that means we won't be hanging out anymore on our days off."

Kurama looked at his friend, a dash of pain in his eyes. "Why would you think that?"

"'Cause there's nothing to do anymore."

"Don't be silly."

"Heh, I guess you're right." Kazuma played with the tab on his can absent-mindedly.

"You seem nervous."

"Nah."

"You're playing with your can."

"I was kinda worried that you only hung out with me to play _Star Fox_."

"That's not true, Kazu. You are a friend. I was actually worried that I was becoming a burden on you."

"You're not."

"Good."

"Hey, guys, wanna play cards or something?" Yusuke asked them, popping his head into the kitchen.

"Sure." Kazuma's eyes briefly looked to Kurama, searching for a reaction. The fox was hesitant. _Shouldn't have answered so quickly._

"Cool." Yusuke's brows shifted in caution. "Hey, I'm gonna try and sneak out for a smoke with Shizuru, can you keep an eye on Keiko?"

"You're a dumb ass, Urameshi. You can always smell smoke on someone who just smoked," Kuwabara told him.

"Yeah but if she doesn't see me then I can just pretend it was from Shizuru."

"That doesn't make any sense. She's gonna know."

"Can ya just keep an eye out, man?"

"Fine, whatever." Yusuke left the kitchen. "Idiot," Kazuma remarked.

"I don't know if I want to play cards," Kurama admitted.

"Too many people this time around, huh?" Kazuma asked. Silence was the reply. "I have this idea, and I wanna give it a try. Do you wanna hear it?"

"Sure."

"Okay, I was thinkin', that since it's the day off and everything, that maybe we can try and get you some exposure, but only really small, ya know?"

_He better not be suggesting what I think he is suggesting._ "I suppose. Go on."

"You're freaking out."

"I am not freaking out."

"You're digging your fingernail into your thumb."

Kurama looked at his free hand. Kazuma was right; this time _he_ was the one with the anxious body language.

Kazuma set his can on the table and took Kurama by the shoulders. "Well, it's just cards, right? Sure we're gonna pass them around and reshuffle them, but we know everyone here. You've got me, and I've been takin' good care of ya. My sister's cool too. We all ate her food earlier, so ya know that you can trust her 'cause otherwise ya wouldn't have eaten it. Urameshi's been pretty good lately. And the girls are girls, they're fine, you know them."

"I'm ridiculous, aren't I?" Kurama averted Kazuma's caring yet stern gaze in shame.

"Nah, I get it, ya know? I'm starting to pay attention in school too, and in biology, it seems like we gotta feed our bodies the occasional germ so that it doesn't get worn down. So I guess, ya know, if you want, we could start off with the safe ones."

_He's not going to let anything happen to you._ "I suppose..."

"Besides, you don't have to worry about that thing anymore. Genkai got rid of it. That was probably the whole reason you caught whatever you caught, ya know? Like your body was caving in, but now it's strong again. It's probably impossible for you to get anything now. You're like, invincible!"

"Nice try, I do appreciate it," Kurama chuckled.

Kazuma gave those shoulders a good squeeze. "We can do it. Ya wanna try?"

"Sure."

"_Yusuke!"_

"Uh oh," Kazuma said with an ounce of dread. "That sounded like Keiko." Curious, the two met Botan in the living area and then proceeded to Kuwabara's back porch. There they found Shizuru and Yusuke seated on outdoor chairs, sharing an ashtray on a table between them. Keiko was just barely beyond the threshold herself, an angry glare constructed on her face.

"What? It's not like I'm doing it around you," Yusuke defended. Keiko was too frustrated to muster a reply. She left the porch, taking Botan with her back into the house. Yusuke glared at the younger Kuwabara, and brought up, "I thought you said you would watch out for her!"

"Sorry! I was having a conversation! It's not like she's going to announce that she's looking for you to the whole house or somethin'!"

"It's no big deal," Shizuru remarked, flicking her cigarette over the ashtray. "She'll get over it."

"You guys don't have to chill here," Yusuke said. "We'll be back in soon."

"That's fine," Kazuma said. "We're gonna go get the cards and table ready for the game." Kurama nodded in agreement, and they left the porch, leaving Shizuru and Yusuke in peace.

"I feel bad for him," the brunette said.

"Why? 'Cause Yukina's not here? She's back at Genkai's anyway, we could just go get her and bring her over."

"No, not my brother. Kurama."

"Again," Yusuke repeated, letting out a quick burst of gray curls, "why?"

"You know why." Shizuru brought the burning stick to her lips.

"That whole thing doesn't make a whole lotta sense to me," Yusuke said. "I mean, he's Youko-freaking-Kurama. That guy's handled more things and blood than I can imagine. He held the heart of a rock monster in his hand before."

"These things don't make sense to anyone but the person suffering."

"Huh?"

"Well, to us, the little things seem just like that, little things. Just think about what it must be like for someone like him to go food shopping."

"I'm not following you."

Shizuru let her arm relax on the chair, her cigarette nearly burned out. "Think about it. You go to buy a drink at the store. You pop it open and drink it. Simple, right?"

"Still not following you." Yusuke held a breath of smoke in his lungs an extra moment longer as he thought about it.

"First, that drink has to be made. Let's say it's soda." She casually took her last drag. "That soda has to be made. Sure, we can hope that our health code isn't violated when that's happening, so we have to trust the drink is okay." She ground the butt end of the stick into the ashtray where she let is rest.

"So you're saying what happens afterward. It goes from them to us, I don't get it."

"Well, it gets shipped out. Then the delivery person handles the packages."

"Bottles and cans are in the packages though, and were probably put there by clean robots." Yusuke put his own cigarette out.

"Someone in the store has to stock the refrigerated sections. That person isn't required to have clean hands to do the job. If they have those work gloves on, who knows what else they were touching...boxes, trash bags, grease...that all gets transferred to the bottle or can."

"That's a little extreme."

"But that's what happens," Shizuru said. "Then you have to account for the clerk. They take the item from you to either scan it or check the price sticker. Then they touch the register and take your money. The thing is, they've been touching that money all day. Who knows where that's been. This is assuming that the delivery person, the stock clerk, and the cashier are all pretty sanitary people. Plus, you have to assume that no customers have moved that item around to retrieve something behind it, or just to read the back label. Now that soda has been through how many hands?"

"That's pretty gross, and you're talking to me, here."

"So now you have your things at home. How many people do you know wipe down every single package they bring into their kitchen? How many people wash their hands before preparing food, but then open up the packages as they go along with their meal? Think about a jar of mayonnaise."

"I don't think he takes it that far," Yusuke said, disturbed.

"I think he does," she countered with. "Or at least part of the way. Could get that bad in the future."

"How do you know if the germs even stay alive that long though? Or if they are bad for you?"

"You're asking the wrong person, kid."

* * *

"Why don't you just go lick a street lamp pole or something?" Yusuke suggested. "That way, when you realize that you won't get sick, you'll be over it. It'll take like two seconds. You just need to go do it."

"It's not that _easy,_ Yusuke," Kurama said, agitated.

"The food is _fine_, Kurama. I got it for _you_. Just eat it."

"I told you that I am not very hungry right now," the fox repeated.

"You just don't want to touch the food!"

Things were beginning to escalate. What started off as a sweet romantic picnic date in the woods was turning into a battle of method; if it was easy for Yusuke to say, then it must be easy for everyone to do.

"I do believe that after we ate the bentos, I was full. This is not a case of me not wanting to touch the food. This is a case of simply _not being hungry._"

"Yeah, but you made those bentos, so of course you wanted to eat those. I bought this at a store, which isn't good enough for you, even though I cleaned off the package and everything!"

_He cleaned off the package?_ "Yusuke, I do not mean to offend you. I am simply not hungry. Perhaps in a little while after we enjoy this date I will be."

"Not sure where the enjoyment part comes in." Yusuke leaned back on the blanket in a pout, having said the final words to ruin what Kurama was trying to rescue.

"You're hopeless," Kurama said, shaking his head of what he wished was just another case of Yusuke being a brat.

"You're the hopeless one. You're this super strong guy and suddenly you can't handle the little shit that comes your way." Yusuke rolled his eyes. _I sound like Keiko now. Jeez, I have such an appreciation for her right now._ "I'm trying to bend over backwards for you and it's not good enough."

"Try harder."

Yusuke noticed the change in Kurama's voice. _Shoulda known not to push it too far. I forget he's a demon sometimes._ "How?"

"Learn how to speak to me before opening your mouth."

"Whoa, you are taking this way to the extreme, man," Yusuke said, sitting up.

"I'm taking it to the extreme?" Kurama put a hand on his chest in sarcastic disbelief. "I clearly was trying to rescue this date, Yusuke, and you kept your mouth running on the same negative topic." The redhead stood now, a chilling expression booming down over the detective. "And when I tell you how to fix it, you say that I am taking an extreme. You simply aren't worth this, Detective."

"What?" Yusuke scrambled to his feet in anger. "What's with this 'Detective' crap, Fox?"

Kurama let out a smug snicker as Yusuke plummeted to that level with him.

"Don't laugh. You have no idea the crap you're putting me through. I'm jumping through hoops just to try and get you _kiss_ me once in a while, and you just sit there all high and mighty, acting like I'm not even doing enough. It's not fair."

"I don't sit here 'all high and mighty,' though you are welcome to think that I am not aware of my condition. It wouldn't be the first time you've displayed complete and utter ignorance." _Easy. Stop pushing his buttons. Do not fall into his trap._

"I'm outta here," Yusuke said as he turned away from Kurama. "That way I can be out of your life. You won't have to worry about my 'icky germs' or Keiko or any crap like that and you can just sit by yourself or with _Kuwabara_ and be a pansy-ass momma's boy." He didn't even care to look back, but perhaps he should have, because the next thing he knew, his feet were tangled in flowers.

"Since you like thinking about pansies so much, I figured that you could spend the night here with them. Good-bye, Yusuke." Kurama gathered his items together quickly and walked away in the opposite direction.

"Damn it," Yusuke whined, hardly able to turn around far enough to see Kurama. "Kurama, I'm gonna blast through this, ya know! Just hang on!" The detective struggled with his legs a bit more and tried to turn around again. He failed. _Damn it, I might blow my feet off._ "Kurama! Did you really leave?"

No answer.

"_Damn it!_" Yusuke could swear the flowers were growing and getting tighter. _I'm going to have to rip this thing out piece by piece. It's gonna take forever._ He shook his head and growled to himself, hoping that no one would come upon him and see his plight.

Which is exactly why Hiei showed up.

"Detective."

"Damn it again!" Yusuke couldn't turn around and face his taunter. "Why are you here?"

"Kurama's energy went out of whack and I wanted to be sure he wasn't under attack." The short demon slowly circled around into Yusuke's sight. "I see now that there is nothing to worry about." Hiei let out a wicked snicker.

"Is that all you do with that thing? Spy on people?"

"Sometimes. But mostly I just scan the city out of boredom."

"A little help?"

"This is far too amusing to end right now," Hiei told him. "What the hell did you do to piss off Kurama?"

"I was being a prick, now can you cut me out?"

"Do you know how easy it would be for me to kill you right now?"

"But you won't," Yusuke shot back.

"How do you know? Maybe this is just a plot between demons to kill off the Spirit Detective?"

"Yeah, I know for a fact that it's definitely not."

"Which leads me back to my question."

"I called him a pansy-ass momma's boy."

"What a brilliant idea."

"It sure did _feel_ like it at the time," Yusuke admitted. "He's like this weak little cry-baby lately. He can't even touch a door-knob."

"You must be talking about Kuwabara."

"Um, Earth to Mister Creep Spy? Have you seen Kurama lately? He's totally psycho!"

"I don't _spy_ on Kurama if that's what you're asking," Hiei spat back.

"I'm not asking you that. What I'm saying is that he's being a crazy _human_ lately and he's getting hard to deal with."

"Since when do you deal with him anyway?"

Yusuke grinned. "You have no idea what's been going on, do you?"

"No."

"Kurama and I are totally mackin'," Yusuke said with pride.

"What the hell is 'macking'?"

The grin stayed still. "Well, Hiei, when two people wanna bang each other, they-"

"Oh, don't make me _sick_, Detective."

"Fine, don't believe me."

Hiei examined the other closely. "You really aren't lying. Hn. Kurama's gone completely soft. How revolting."

Yusuke found himself free as Hiei cut him loose. "Thanks man. I owe you."

"Don't talk about that mushy crap between you and Kurama again."

"There's probably not going to be any anymore."

"Whatever."

_To Be Continued..._


End file.
